A Tale of Transformation up on San Bruno Mountain

by Barbie Levasseur, Executive Vice President, South San Francisco Education Foundation

Baden HS students on the SBM ropes courseAs Baden Continuation High School students walked on the field to participate in the ropes course at San Bruno Mountain Park, most of them seemed cautious, but excited. For many of them this was their first field trip since elementary school. Not all of them had their curiosity piqued though. I noticed two students standing off to the side nonchalantly. When I introduced myself to Leo*, he jokingly gave me a fake name as his friend, Ella*, was getting a replacement name tag. “Did you lose the first one?” asked Jo, one of the Thornton Wilderness School Students who runs the ropes course. “No,” replied Ella, “I just… threw it…” Unfazed, Jo wrote Ella’s name on a new nametag and passed it to her with a smile. She’d probably seen this scene enough times before to foresee the transformation about to occur.

Continue reading

San Mateo County Parks Annual Passes Now Available for Checkout at County Libraries

Annual park passesThe San Mateo County Parks Foundation is pleased to announce that we have placed two annual county park passes in each of the thirteen San Mateo County Libraries. Seven of the 23 San Mateo County Parks charge a $6 vehicular entrance fee, which is much-needed revenue for the Parks Department. However, it can also be a barrier to low-income families already struggling with high rents and inflation.

Continue reading