November 13th E-Newsletter |
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This fall, our community has been busy learning, restoring, exploring, and gathering together. Hundreds of local students joined WRI programs in the field and under the stars, volunteers helped restore and maintain our campus, and community members continued coming together to learn about the natural world we all share. There’s a lot to celebrate, and even more to look forward to. Scroll down for upcoming dates or visit our Event Calendar to view the full schedule and RSVP. See you at the Red Barn! |
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Red Barn Event: Greenlight for Clean Energy TONIGHT, November 13th 7:00PM-8:00PM |
Join us for an inspiring evening with Eli Duncan-Gilmour, Northwest Community Partnership Manager for Greenlight America! Learn how local grassroots advocacy is accelerating clean energy projects, the insights gained from over 100 successful campaigns, and what lies ahead for clean energy in our communities. Greenlight’s work has helped abate over a trillion tons of greenhouse gas emissions—the equivalent of planting nearly 18 billion trees.
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| Winter Prep Workday: Mulching for Native Plants Thursday, November 19th 10:00AM-2:00PM |
Join us for a hands-on community workday as we prepare our Native Plant Garden for winter!
Newly planted native species face tough competition from winter-growing grasses that thrive under the snow and stunt spring growth. By applying a heavy layer of mulch, we can smother these invasive grasses, conserve soil moisture, and give our native plants the protection they need to flourish next spring. |
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Red Barn Event: Recreation Ecology in Cascadia Thursday, November 19th 7:00PM-8:00PM |
As outdoor recreation grows across the Cascades, learn how local wildlife—from cougars and bobcats to the native, state-endangered Cascade red fox—respond to human activity and ski resort footprints right here in the Wenatchee Valley and Leavenworth area. Join us for an insightful presentation on Recreation Ecology in Cascadia with local conservation ecologists, Marwa Mahmoud, Nate Redon, and Marcela Todd Zaragoza! |
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| Red Barn Event: "The Icicle Calls Us Back" Film Showing Tuesday, December 8th 7:00PM-8:00PM |
Join us as filmmaker, Claire Seaman, shares a powerful documentary exploring the deep connections between the p’squosa/Wenatchi people and nsíq̓əlt (Icicle Creek). Through the voices of multiple generations, the film invites audiences to reflect on stewardship, cultural resilience, and a shared vision for the future of this cherished landscape.
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Missed a recent Red Barn Event? Or busy during our next one? Catch the live stream or watch past recordings whenever you like on our YouTube Channel!
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Traveling Naturalist Wild Bird Program
4th Grade |
Nearly 100 fourth-grade students participated in two Traveling Naturalist Field Days at Confluence State Park and the Wenatchee River Institute campus. Students learned to identify bird songs and calls, practiced using binoculars, and sharpened their observation and communication skills through hands-on activities. They also explored local trails, searched for signs of wildlife, and experienced the beauty of the fall season. |
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| Traveling Naturalist Earth Explorers 5th Grade
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We had 5 Traveling Naturalist Field Days on our campus, Lake Chelan State Park, and Confluence State Park where we taught 245 students about how the spheres of the Earth influence one another. Students put their engineering skills to the test to try to control erosion in miniature stream tables, and they worked on building matchstick forests to see what factors influence the spread of forest fires. Students also explored trails looking for signs of wildlife and admiring the fall season. For many of the Field Days, students also saw the Summer Chinook salmon in the Wenatchee River and for many of them it was their first time seeing salmon in the wild!
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Traveling Planetarium Pinnacles Prep Charter School 8th Grade |
We showed 26 eighth-grade students the wonders of space. They saw how the sun appears in the sky with one rotation and one orbit of Earth, they learned about lunar and solar eclipses and were able to witness both inside the planetarium. They also marveled about the stars and constellations and ended learning about the four main types of galaxies. |
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WRI After School Program K-3rd Grades |
Our trip to the Leavenworth Public Library went marvelously! Hannah shared a lovely book and led an air-dry clay craft that got the students exploring shapes, sizes, and their own creativity. We have also been doing more story times, and alongside that, we created our own story. Each student contributed a line to craft a tale about a great eagle. |
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WRI Winter After School Program (ASP) Scholarship |
Thanks to generous support from Hotel Pension Anna, WRI is offering one 90% tuition scholarship for a 2-days-per-week session in Winter ASP to eligible Cascade School District families! If you have a financial need for childcare, please fill out our Scholarship Application Form before registration to express your interest.
Please submit the scholarship form by December 1st! General registration for Winter ASP will open in early December. More details to come! |
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Have you seen the newest WRI Field Notes in your mailbox yet?
Inside, you'll learn more about the Red Barn Resiliency Hub, hear stories from campers and staff about a summer of exploration and discovery, and see how our community came together after the December 2025 storm to help care for our campus. Plus, don't miss a fun Nature Journal about the Short-Stemmed Brittlegill Mushroom. |
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Make a Difference Day Recap |
Make a Difference Day brought together dedicated volunteers for a weekend of restoration, stewardship, and community building at WRI. Preparations began on Friday, when volunteer, Patrick, helped Brandon and Canuche cut hazard trees and process logs to prepare for Saturday's work. Their efforts laid the groundwork for a productive day of hands-on campus improvement.
On Saturday, early volunteers planted approximately 30 native shrubs, including rose spirea, willows, and Pacific ninebark, in naturally moist areas across campus to support long-term habitat health. The newly installed plants were mulched, marked, and tucked in with a protective blanket for winter. Throughout the day, seven volunteers worked together to break down and move brush piles from around campus into two central collection areas, making significant progress on ongoing storm cleanup efforts. The collected woody debris was fed into Ecological Services' biochar kilns the following Friday. Watch the biochar reel on Instagram.
Thanks to everyone who contributed their time and energy to help prepare the campus for the winter season. |
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This year WRI is a participant in the 40th anniversary of Project FeederWatch. Our wildlife tree area behind the River Haus now has two green bird feeders up that will be full of seed for the winter months. Project FeederWatch runs from November through April, and works to "track bird population trends and range shifts, monitor avian diseases, and uncover exciting revelations about the day-to-day lives of backyard birds." - FeederWatch.org
If you're interested in helping out, we have a clipboard with datasheets in the River Haus's Sun Room to write down your observations. We also have binoculars and bird ID books to borrow during business hours. Our bird feeders are in the small hawthorn tree in the pond garden, and in the cluster of young cedar trees next to our large wildlife tree snag. We will be observing our feeders on Wednesday and Thursday each week through April. If you're interested in supporting this Community Science project, please email Tiffa for more details.
Written by Tiffa Theden, WRI's Land Steward |
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Thank you to our donors from the last 2 weeks! |
Steve and Betsy Backstrom in honor of Arne Backstrom - Sustaining Gro Buer and Bruce Williams - Sustaining Laura and Greg Reichlin - Sustaining Mall Boyd - Sustaining
Teresa Lavender Lexine Long and Nate Hough-Snee - Sustaining Christine Emmel - Sustaining Maya von Wodtke and CJ Carter - Sustaining
Alice and Bob Vernon - Sustaining
Robin and Dave Judd Melissa Roe - Sustaining Diane and Herb Young - Sustaining
Orin and Lisa Melvin - Sustaining
Mandy Maxwell and Bill Riedel - Sustaining
Karen and Curt Haire - Sustaining
Lisa and Brian Koblenz - Sustaining Obertal Inn - Sustaining Crunch Pak LLC Connie Cogburn and Andy Day - Sustaining
Mark Weick and Carole Ann Borshard - Sustaining
Stevie Clifton and Hannah Kwon - Sustaining
Andrew Tokar and Alexandra Chasin
Hillary and Chris Clark - Sustaining
Anonymous Donors
Annette Jouard and John Taylor - Sustaining
Chuck and Candace Egner - Sustaining
David Stoller and Diane Patterson - Sustaining
Mustache Unicorn Fund
Kamuron Gurol - Sustaining Lisa and Jim Osse - Sustaining Jill and Joel Martinez - Sustaining |
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