#6: Park Postcards Podcast | Episode 6 – Presidio

"I thoroughly enjoyed this this walk. It was very encouraging just talking to the different people in the group, very comforting, very stress free, very relaxing. So thank you for making this possible!" Erica Choy after a socially distanced trip to the Presidio.

Tune in to Episode 6 to listen to community members from the Rafiki Coalition and Community Partnerships leader, Amy Deck from the Presidio Trust share their experience watching the Presidio projects come to life.

"I thoroughly enjoyed this this walk. It was very encouraging just talking to the different people in the group, very comforting, very stress free, very relaxing. So thank you for making this possible!" Erica Choy after a socially distanced trip to the Presidio.

Tune in to Episode 6 to listen to community members from the Rafiki Coalition and Community Partnerships leader, Amy Deck from the Presidio Trust share their experience watching the Presidio projects come to life.

---

TRANSCRIPT:

---

[Background music fades in: “Trail” – Adobe Stock Music] General description: Ranger Fatima “This is Golden Gate National Recreation Area’s Park Postcards Podcast! Each episode will introduce you to what makes each park site unique, through the voice of community members who have visited, and our park rangers and staff partners who work there. We aim to highlight the work we do to connect our local community groups to the special places in our park and share what these places and experiences mean to them. The beauty of our outreach work is collaborating with diverse community members and newcomers to introduce them and welcome them to their National Parks. We hope that through listening to these ‘audio postcards’, you get excited to visit Golden Gate National Recreation Area in a healthy and safe future!” Transition to Community Speakers: Ranger Fatima “Hello everyone, welcome to Episode 6 of the Park Postcards podcast. My name is Fatima Colindres, and I am park ranger with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area’s Community Programs and Outreach team. As part of outreach work we collaborate with community group leaders and park partners to bring non-traditional park users to their National Park. It is my pleasure to introduce Betty Delaney and Erica Choy, two members of the Rafiki Coalition, an organization located in the Bayview, which has the mission to ‘eliminate health inequities in San Francisco’s Black and marginalized communities through education, advocacy, and by providing holistic health and wellness services in a culturally affirming environment.’ . They will be sharing their memories of a recent walk in the Presidio of San Francisco, when they explored the Tennessee Hollow watershed restoration from Crissy Field Marsh to the Main Post.”

Community Speaker’s Postcard: Betty Delaney – Rafiki Coalition Community Member “My name is Betty I'm from San Francisco. I'm a native to San Francisco and I love the Presidio. Today I took a short walk and we were taking a break at the Redwood Grove, and I would encourage you to come here because you get to see, not only what was - in terms of how they're doing the development of the watershed - but you get to go through the shaded area of the redwoods. You can sit on the benches that have been recycled from trees from the Presidio, and you can enjoy all the beauty of the nature in this one segment of the Presidio. Thank you for the wonderful opportunity to see the Presidio, for all the work being done by the people, and I encourage you to come be a part of it.”

Community Speaker’s Postcard: Erica Choy – Rafiki Coalition Community Member “Hi my name is Erica and I just wanted to give an ending to my nice hike or walk that we just took with Miss Amy and Miss Rebekah. As a San Francisco resident a lot of times we take for granted that there's so many beautiful places here within the city, that we actually don't even know they exist! My children did attend the Presidio Child Development Center, so I was familiar a little bit with the area, but I've always loved this area. So thank you for making this possible for us, and that I didn't have to pay to come to this nice tour. Sometimes that can also be a hindrance for low income families, so but I was very glad and I really enjoyed it. I have back problems, I have a knee problem, and I thoroughly enjoyed this this walk. It was very encouraging just talking to the different people in the group, very comforting, very stress free, very relaxing. So thank you for making this possible. So I invite anybody from the city, you know come and see this gem that our beautiful city has to offer, and all the wonderful work that is still in progress, but at the end you know is going to be done, and so thank you for making this possible for us, thank you very much have a good weekend.”

Transition to Amy Deck: Ranger Fatima “Thank you Betty and Erica for sharing your memories. As you described your experience, I traveled back in time to 1998 when I first started working in the Presidio, when Thompsons reach and the Redwood Grove did not exist and all that was there in its place was a field of tall non-indigenous grass, and nothing else. Wow! How this place has changed! Next I would like to introduce Amy Deck, who works for our partner agency, the Presidio Trust. She will share the story of the Tennessee Hollow watershed and all the new transformations taking place right now in your park.”

Amy Deck’s Postcard and Presidio Projects overview: “Hi my name is Amy Deck and I work for the Presidio Trust in our Community Partnerships Department. I'm going to talk about a trip to the Presidio with the Rafiki Coalition, a group from the Bayview neighborhood in San Francisco. We are learning how to engage with communities in different ways during the pandemic, and this was one of our first safe walks with masks and social distancing in place.

The Rafiki Coalition is a longtime partner, and it was wonderful to get outdoors and welcome these friends back to the park. On a beautiful Fall sunny day with a slight breeze, we took a walk through the northern part of the Tennessee Hollow watershed - and I have to share that I was nearly moved to tears to see the amazing work that has been made on the Tunnel Tops Project and the restoration of the Quartermaster Reach Marsh project. The Tunnel Tops project is well underway and is planned to be open in October of 2021. The Quartermaster Reach project is one of the last projects in our efforts to revitalize the Tennessee Hollow watershed.

For well over a decade, the Presidio Trust, with our partners, has been revitalizing sections of the watershed. This means that creeks have been brought back above ground, native habitats have been restored, Army landfills have been removed, trails and playing fields are being upgraded, and the history of those who once lived here is being shared. Volunteers have been key to this ongoing work by caring for these newly created habitats, by planting and weeding.

We met at the Sports Basement parking lot, and we were so thrilled to see the new terminus for the Muni 30 Stockton - it now comes straight into Crissy Field. We were able to see the Tunnel Tops new trails and overlooks taking shape, and the channel cut in the Marsh restoration project. We talked about the watershed and how after many years of restoration projects, this section of the freshwater Creek has been brought back to the daylight after running through pipes for many years. It was very interesting to be here at a time where we could see the formation of the creek, and talk about how our natural resource specialists have a plan to draw oysters from the Bay into this new habitat using oyster shells gathered from restaurants.

We walked up the Tennessee hollow trail and took a rest at the Wayburn Redwood Grove - which I'm pretty sure was Betty's favorite spot. The Grove was dedicated to Ed and Peggy Wayburn, who advocated for the preservation of America's wild open spaces and the establishment of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which the Presidio is a part of. This Redwood Grove overlooks Thompson's Reach, which was a riparian restoration project that was completed in 2005 and connects to the Quartermaster Reach. We walked up towards the Main Post where we were able to see a new topographic map that's positioned right in front of the fire station. It was a wonderful way to see the entire watershed.

Overall, it was a fantastic walk and visit with some of our beloved community partners. I encourage you to come back to enjoy the Presidio, your National Park “

[Background music escalates to a more upbeat rhythm: “Trail” – Adobe Stock Music]

Conclusion and looking ahead: Ranger Fatima “Thank you once again Betty, Erica and Amy for sharing your special memories of the Presidio visit to the incredible watershed restoration that can now be enjoyed by all visitors at The Presidio. For more information about the sites discussed today, visit https://www.presidio.gov/places

And thank you podcast friends for tuning in! I hope you’ll join us again on future episodes that will feature other park sites around the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. In our upcoming Episode 7 we’ll hear from Ranger Cordelia Vargas, our friend from the Marin Headlands, who’ll share her bird knowledge and highlights from her area of the park. Episode 8 we’re excited to hear from park partner Yakuta Poonawalla from the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy at Lands End. We can’t wait for you to hear them! Until then, stay safe and recreate responsibly in your National Parks!” [Background music fades out: “Trail” – Adobe Stock Music]