Attention all volunteer-for-nature types! Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, part of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, would like to invite you to come out to help out. A celebration of Public Lands Day is planned for Sept. 24, 2011. Volunteers will clear overgrown vegetation, remove invasive weeds, fix trails, as well as construct and maintain facilities on the north side of the Monument. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. at Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center. Follow signs along SR 504 to get there.
Come join us ready to get some work done. Bring boots, gloves and sunscreen. All activity levels are welcome. The Mount St. Helens Institute will provide a continental breakfast and coffee. Plan to stick around for a barbeque and raffle after the work-day at 3:30 p.m.
For more information on how to get involved with this and many other events celebrating National Public Lands Day, please go to:
http://www.publiclandsday.org/npld-sites/search?state=Washington.
On Sept. 24, fees will be waived at day use sites operated by the Forest Service only. No fees will be waived at recreation rentals and campgrounds. Johnston Ridge Observatory will also be free to enter this day.
Washington State University Vancouver will screen four movies during its 2011 Diversity Film Festival themed "Diversity and Disabilities: Celebrating the Abilities in Us All." Films will be shown at 4 p.m. Sept 12 – 15 in the Dengerink Administrative building, room 110. Admission is free and this event is open to the public. Each film highlights different disabilities including those considered physical, cognitive, familiar or extraordinary.
"Wretches & Jabberers"
Today, Monday, Sept. 12
In "Wretches & Jabberers" two men with autism embark on a global quest to change attitudes about disability and intelligence. At each stop they dissect public attitudes about autism and issue a hopeful challenge to reconsider competency and the future.
"Blindsight"
Tuesday, Sept. 13
Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Himalayas, Blindsight Follows the gripping adventure of six Tibetan teenagers who set out to climb the 23,000-foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. A dangerous journey soon becomes a seemingly impossible challenge made all the more remarkable by the fact that the teenagers are blind.
"Music Within"
Wednesday, Sept. 14
Richard Pimentel was always a great public speaker with a winning personality, but when he tries out for the country's top debate team and is rejected, he takes his shattered dreams to the Army for a tour of duty in Vietnam. When a bomb blast takes his hearing, he returns home to become a groundbreaking speaker and campaigner on behalf of the rights of everyone with a disability including his fellow vets.
"For Once in My Life"
Thursday, Sept. 15
This documentary is about a unique band of singers and musicians and their journey to show the world the greatness-and killer soundtrack-within each of them. The band members have a wide range of mental and physical disabilities-as well as musical abilities that extend into ranges of pure genius. The film's Director, Jim Bigham, will be a special guest at the screening.
WSU Vancouver's Diversity Council sponsors the Diversity Film Festival annually. For more information, visit www.events.vancouver.wsu.edu.
