The Friends of the Florissant Fossil Beds, Inc.

by Sally McCracken Maertens, Friends Vice President

Hardly a day goes by that I don’t pick up a magazine, a newspaper, a professional journal, or a newsletter and see a reference to getting our kids outside again. So many of us “older fossils” were raised outdoors. It is sad to hear kids say that they would rather be inside with video games and computers.

Richard Louv’s book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder has made us sit up and take notice. The National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, state parks, health organizations, environmental agencies, and educational institutions have all begun to work on initiatives to “leave no child inside.”

The Friends of the Florissant Fossil Beds have finally been able to confirm a speaking engagement date with Richard Louv. Mark Friday, October 3, 2008, on your calendars! A weekend of outdoor activities is being planned by a core group of stakeholders, including Colorado College, the Catamount Institute, Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education, the Sierra Club and the School in the Woods. We are all very excited. Credit will be available for teachers.

Once the basics are accomplished by the planning team, more information will be available to our members. We hope that the weekend of October 3-5 will be a great event for the people of El Paso and Teller County. We will be looking for volunteers to help with various aspects of the event. If you would like to help, please contact Sally McCracken Maertens at smaertens@fossilbeds.org.

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