Last year when I sent out the End of Year letter, I said that my first year as President gave me a great deal of appreciation for our members, donors, and volunteers. In 2024, as our reach continues to grow and expand, I am even more humbled and grateful to all our supporters.

Growing more native plants in our yards is an important part of helping our declining bird populations survive.

January is traditionally the month in which we hold a dinner to recognize and thank the many volunteers who make Eastside Audubon what it is and carry out the mission. Without them, our organization wouldn’t exist.

I recently learned about a nonprofit with a mission to share the joys of birding with people who have disabilities and to ensure birding is accessible for everybody.

I’m taking it easy this fall, after learning that tidying up my garden before winter can be detrimental for birds and the insects they eat.

Perhaps like me, you’ve been frightened by reports of the huge decline in the numbers of birds in your lifetime, with scientific research showing that we’ve lost 29% of North American birds since 1970. I hope you’ll join me in working to bring birds and bugs back by transforming your yard.

For me, podcasts have been a source of both learning and entertainment over the past pandemic year. Through podcasts, I’ve practiced my Spanish listening skills, learned about the science of happiness, heard in-depth analysis of current issues in the news, and gained more knowledge about birds.

As I write this, the number of people with COVID vaccinations is growing across the country, COVID cases are decreasing, and the CDC is relaxing their national masking guidelines. All are signs that make me hopeful that perhaps we’ll soon be emerging from the pandemic to a “new normal” life in which we can meet face to face again.

I’d like to encourage you to take a small action that could make a huge difference for birds: support the Bird-Safe Buildings Act that’s now in Congress.

An editorial about bugs caught my eye the other day. Bugs? It was an unusual topic for an editorial but this one was in a scientific journal and written by entomologists. While I don’t especially love the little creatures that bite me or damage my garden plants, I’m happy to let them coexist because I know they’re a crucial food source for birds.

My letter this month is going to cover a few different topics, starting with changes in the chapter’s executive leadership.

Audubon Washington has identified several priorities for the current Washington State legislative session to fight climate change and preserve conservation funding. They’ve made it easy to engage with your representatives and make your voice heard on these important issues.

January is traditionally the month in which Eastside Audubon holds a volunteer appreciation dinner to honor our many volunteers. Since we cannot come together for a meal and ceremony this year, due to the pandemic, I wanted to express my appreciation here.

One personality trait I’ve discovered about myself, among others good and bad, is that I don’t like to look back. This reluctance to look back isn’t always good, since I know that re-examination of past failures and successes can result in improved future performance.

During September’s devastating wildfires in the western US and numerous tropical storms in the Caribbean and Atlantic, I was reminded again that climate change is affecting us now.

Eastside Audubon’s board received great feedback from the “safe start” survey that was emailed to our membership in June. There were more than 100 respondents to the online survey. We learned that most people have a high level of concern about resuming any indoor chapter activities, but there is some positive interest shown for participating in outdoor, small group, socially-distanced activities such as bird walks without carpools.