Earth Day/Wilderness Park 45th Anniversary Celebration

Earth Day has always been a special day for SBPC. Pre-Covid, we started the tradition of sponsoring an Earth Day family campout at Wilderness Park. Covid put a stop to that for two years. But we kept growing the rewilded area of the park with the help of volunteers.

The relaxation of Covid restrictions coincided with the 45th Anniversary of Wilderness Park in 2022. So we decided to make this Earth Day a weekend of celebration for both. City officials and staff provided approvals and extraordinary support to the celebration.

Nearly 50 people signed up to camp out and started showing up at noon on Saturday to pitch camp and prepare for the evening’s activities. Kathleen Jacecko of Eco-kids Camp provided crafts for the children and Mary Simun led a nature walk through the restored areas of the park.

More than 60 people gathered for an evening dinner (catered by Zanyas) and program to kick off the weekend’s events. The program opened with remarks by president Jim Light and recognition of SBPC’s projects and progress. We were then honored by a blessing from Robert Dorame, Chairman of the Tongva Nation tribal council. Tongva participation and recognition were essential to the celebration because the park served as a lookout site for the local Tongva people. Robert expressed his gratitude for honoring his people and reestablishing native habitat. He explained that “Tongva” means “People of the Earth.” Jacob Varvarigos then presented our first “volunteer of the year” awards.

The following earned the inaugural awards:

  • Shizu Takura – for serving as Student Ambassador

  • Michael Lee-Chang – for serving as our Student Ambassador

  • Julian Chasin – for repeat volunteer work and team leadership

  • Brianna Egan – for her leadership on Redondo’s first Community Garden

  • Carl Leach – for his repeat volunteer work and leadership in the execution of the community garden

  • Victoria Petit – for her repeat volunteer work and trailblazing as our original student ambassador

  • Caleb RodriguezMesin – for repeat volunteer efforts- highest volunteer hours

  • Todd Bertwell – for his repeat volunteer efforts and for trailblazing our seed-gleaning effort

  • Mike Rice – City of Redondo park docent who has gone above and beyond in supporting our rewilding at Wilderness Park.

  • Eileen Kallish – for her leadership in fundraising for the Community Garden


The program was followed by a dusk nature walk and the very popular campfire and marshmallow roasting. Division Fire Chief Isaac Yang was also present. The second day started with a flurry of activity. Multiple organizations joined SBPC to educate the community on their environmental activities including: -

  • Beach Cities Health District

  • Surfrider Foundation, South Bay Chapter

  • Sierra Club

  • California Native Plant Society

  • Beach Cities Bicycle Coalition

  • Redondo Beach Community Garden Committee

  • Redondo Beach Residents for Quality of Life

  • Redondo Union Key Club and National Honor Society

  • Girl Scout Troops


Two Redondo Girl Scout Troops set up craft activities in Pine Camp that morning. Live music started in the Amphitheater with Zeal Levin and Justin Garfield. Jacob and Caleb led about 60 volunteers in restoration activities while Todd Bertwell led a seminar teaching attendees how to properly collect native seeds.


By 11 AM Mary Simun led the third nature walk of the weekend. A taco cart was rolled in for lunch providing great food for all participating in the event. As lunch continued, US99 took the stage and rocked us out until 3PM, the official end of the weekend event.

We got some unplanned events as well…. Mike Klein and the Redondo Public Works Team responded in minutes when the restoration crew could not get any water pressure to water the new plants. During the afternoon, many participants got to witness one of the pond turtles laying eggs. With the great weather, the musical talent, the participants, the great food, and the attendees, the weekend was a huge success. Thanks to all who participated and attended.

We want to specially recognize Mara Lang, Jacob Varvarigos, Aga Chenfu, Caleb RodriguezMesin, and his mom - who worked all the preparation and logistics that made the event a success. Like a duck, while everything looks smooth on top, there is a lot of paddling underneath. We also want to thank the City attendants who provided critical support round the clock during the event: Noah, Jonathan, Eduardo, Teresa, Jonathan, and Mike.

And finally, we want to recognize our sponsors:

  • Wild Birds Unlimited – squirrel-proof bird feeder and food

  • Kirari West - camper breakfast

  • Peet’s Coffee - campers coffee

  • Health-Ade Kombucha - restoration refreshments

  • Whole Foods - donation

If you attended, we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. We welcome your feedback. And if you missed it, keep an eye out for next year!

South Bay Parkland Conservancy