Wildlife Refuge and Voting

I told you in my last post that Stanley had had a busy week, and he surely did. In addition to going to the pumpkin patch, we went to the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge.

The refuge is really near us, and it was created out of citizen requests to save this important wildlife area. It reminds me of a quote by Margaret Mead who said "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." I love that idea! Every single one of us can help change the world!

Here's what it says on the wildlife Refuge's website: This special place is a refuge, a haven for wildlife and people. Born of a community's dream, and made possible by their support, a wildlife refuge now thrives in the backyard of a growing metropolis.

The Refuge is now home to nearly 200 species of birds, over 50 species of mammals, 25 species of reptiles and amphibians, and a wide variety of insects, fish and plants. The Refuge has also become a place where people can experience and learn about wildlife and the places they call home.

While we were there we saw lots of beautiful birds, including a pretty Western Scrub Jay and a Northern Flicker (a woodpecker). I've put links to pictures of those birds. Click on the bird name to go to the link. We also saw a ton of Canada Geese. Here's one of my photos of the geese. Look in the grass to see LOTS of heads!


It's a really lovely place and we enjoyed walking through it with Stanley. Stanley's favorite part was when he got to climb a tree and play in the moss while we were there! That Stanley is a wild guy...


Then on Monday night we got together with several friends - there were ten of us in addition to Stanley, and we talked about the election. I am sure you know this is a very important election because we're choosing a new president! I hope all your parents will go out and vote. Voting day is Tuesday for most of the country, but Oregon is kind of unique because we are the only state to do all of our voting by mail. Everyone gets a ballot in the mail and then we fill it out and mail it in. In many states you can vote by mail if you're going to be out of town or you need to vote early, but it's the only way we do it here. Oregon typically has a very high turnout for elections, due in part to this process.

At our party we had a lot of great discussion because we're voting for the president, but we also have many other things on the ballot. There are candidates for other offices and then there are measures to decide about laws. Some people knew a lot about some of the issues while some others did not, so we would share our ideas and opinions. I think everyone left with a better understanding of the important things on our ballot. Stanley thought it was very interesting and wished he were old enough to vote. When he turns 18 he promised he'd register to vote and get involved in the political process because it's so important.

Here are some pictures from our party
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Hope you're having a great week at school. WORK hard and learn lots!