From the President

President’s Message 

The 2022 spring paddle season opened on April 15.  I think I can speak for all paddle and logistics crew members: We are ready! Ready to share the beauty of the Dragon with our guests and school groups. Our volunteer crew is working hard to make our paddle trips relaxing, entertaining, and educational.  
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The spring paddle season, always fascinating, is marked by the arrival of the prothonotary warblers, bald eagles on the nest, flowering trees, flowering plants, butterflies, dragon flies, and the bald cypress as they grow hair!  A few crew members envy the delicate, hair-like needles of the bald cypress.

The 2022 first quarter was exciting. We held two seasonal hikes for members and guests which were highly successful and fun for everyone.  We plan to offer hikes each season on one of our properties along the Dragon. These facilitated hikes are an opportunity to see the magic of Dragon Run and how it changes throughout the year. 

Our most recent hike was held Sunday, March 20 which was the spring equinox.  Highlights included hearing warblers, seeing blood root and other flowering plants, the incredible trees (the bald cypress are blooming), mud turtles as they laid their eggs, and a snake. The hot chocolate, spiced apple cider, and cookies after the hike offered guests an opportunity to discuss all that we saw on the hikes.

In other key areas, volunteers have been working on stewardship management plans for each of our properties, upgrading our business processing system, digitizing many of our paper records, and modernizing the FODR webpage.  The new webpage, like the Dragon, will be in full bloom this spring. 

I hope everyone has picked up a copy of the spring edition of the Local Scoop magazine.  This issue is all about Dragon Run—from the cover (commissioned especially for this issue), to the amazing photography, and an entertaining article covering everything about the Dragon.  You also can read the article online at https://www.localscoopmagazine.com/digital-edition. The article is a credit to all FODR members--past and present—who have joined together to protect this fragile ecosystem.

Through the generosity of the Local Scoop magazine, their publisher--Susan McFadden, editor--Morgan Sanders, and cover artist Christian Johnson printed 200 copies of the cover artwork and donated them to Friends of Dragon Run. We are offering framed and unframed copies of the print; All proceeds benefit Friends of Dragon Run. Check our website, DragonRun.org, for details about purchasing one.

If you have ideas for additional activities in 2022, please contact me at [email protected]. We are expanding many of our programs and want to involve more members in these volunteer opportunities.

The motto on our brochure is “Ever Save a Dragon?” Volunteers are always welcome to help answer that question.
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Best of the seasons and the Dragon Run to all. Hope to see you soon.