TULARE COUNTY TREASURES

 
  • Home
    • What's New on the Website?
    • Terms of Use & Disclaimer
  • TREASURE TALES
    • Introduction
    • Alphabetized List of Treasures: A through M
    • Alphabetized List of Treasures: N through Z
    • TREASURE TALES: A through D
    • TREASURE TALES: E through L
    • TREASURE TALES: M through R
    • TREASURE TALES: S through Z
  • Maps & Tours
    • Introduction
    • Interactive Maps
    • Treasures Sorted by Activities and Interests: A through D
    • E through L
    • M through R
    • S through Z
    • Treasures Sorted by Community: A through D
    • E through L
    • M through R
    • S through T
    • U through Z
  • Treasures Timeline
    • 1800s
    • Early 1900s
    • Mid 1900s
    • 1970 - 1979
    • 1980 - 1999
    • Early 2000s
  • Future Treasures
    • Introduction
    • Nominate
  • About Us
    • TCT Project Team
    • TCT Project Mission
    • TCT Project History
    • TCT Project Partners and Sponsors
  • Contact Us

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“Each blade of grass has its spot on earth whence it draws its life, its strength; and so is man rooted to the land from which he draws his faith together with his life.” – Joseph Conrad

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“Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.”  -- Theodore Roethke


ABOUT US:
The Tulare County Treasures Project Team




    The TCT project team began working in August, 2011.  Our goal is to celebrate the processes and the rich results of the history of conservation in our county, by sharing stories of this magnificent land and its people.  All volunteers, we are creating this website as an appreciation of and tribute to these places and those who conserved and steward them -- our gift to this legacy and to you. 




    If you are interested in volunteering to work on this project by researching, writing articles, or providing photos or other skills, please let us know via the Contact Us page.  Treasures await you!



MEET THE TREASURES TEAM:

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John Greening  is retired from College of the Sequoias, where he taught as a Professor of  Biology for thirty two years.  An avid photographer, he is a member of several camera clubs and serves as President of the San Joaquin Valley Club Council, which includes clubs from Stockton to Taft.  He also volunteers as a naturalist and photographer for Sequoia Riverlands Trust , and has been collecting information on the oak gall species present on their preserves.  John contributed many of the photos on the TCT website.


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Paul Hurley -- Paul Hurley is a journalist and educator who has lived in Visalia since 1990. He is a former opinion page editor for the Visalia Times-Delta and had a 32-year career writing for newspapers. He divides his time among teaching, writing and his involvement in a number of public affairs activities, including the Kenneth L. Maddy Institute and 210 Connect.








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Louise Jackson -- Louise Jackson was raised as a mountain girl who unfortunately was required to attend school in the lowlands eight to nine months of the year. However, her heart remained year-round in Mineral King, the summer home of her family and near ancestors. Louise’s mother grounded her in the importance of the history, conservation, preservation and interconnection of the natural and human resources of our mountain lands. That focus has resulted in a lifetime of hiking, climbing, skiing, backpacking and mule packing, as well as research and writings on our Southern Sierra Nevada region. Louise has written several articles, poetry and three published books based on her research and experiences.

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Shirley Kirkpatrick --  Agriculture is the underlying force in Shirley’s life. She was raised on a family farm in rural Fresno County; earned a  journalism degree with agricultural emphasis at Fresno State College; married a farmer/banker/agricultural appraiser; and established a business providing writing, public relations and administrative work for farm organizations. She now farms citrus in the Lindcove area with her husband and son. Shirley is a vocal advocate of farmland preservation  (20 years on the Tulare County Planning Commission). She envisions making our county “Napa Valley South” -- welcoming tourists and providing face-to-face visits with real farmers.



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Rick Mitchell has served as naturalist, lead teacher and administrator at SCICON since 1986.  A science teacher by training, Rick had taught in Colusa, Fresno and Visalia school districts prior to coming to SCICON.  According to Rick, “SCICON has enabled me to share my love for the natural world with my passion for working with youth!”

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Terry Ommen began his career with the Visalia Police Department in 1972, and has lived in Visalia ever since.  For over two decades, Terry has researched Tulare County history and written on a broad range of local subjects, particularly the early peace officers and the badmen who gave them such grief.  A member of the California Council for the Preservation of History (CCPH), Visalia Heritage, the Wild West History Association (WWHA), and the Tulare County Historical Society (TCHS), Terry continues to express his enjoyment of learning about the old west in hundreds of local history columns and articles for various newspapers, along with publishing his "Historic Happenings" blog (www.visaliahistory.blogspot.com) and two books (so far!).


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Matthew Rangel is a fine artist whose original lithographic prints and drawings are centered on the ways in which human constructs of land influence our experience of place, and his perceptual inquiry of places embodies physical aspects of land through personal narrative.  An Adjunct Drawing and Painting Professor at College of the Sequoias, Matthew also mentors Project Puente, serves as a board member of Arts Visalia and the Sequoia Natural History Association, and is the founder and chief coordinator of the annual Kaweah Land and Arts Festival.  His website is www.rangelstudio.com. 
 


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Greg Schwaller retired after 23 years in the Navy's Submarine Service, then worked for a number of years as a Department of Defense contractor and a consultant before retiring again, only to find himself working at least half time as a volunteer on various community projects such as TCT.  For TCT, he has learned new skills so that he can serve as the project's videographer and website manager.  Greg thanks H J Brown, Linda Horsting,  James Seligman, and Niki Woodard for their generous help along this learning curve.


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Laurie Schwaller -- Drawn by the beauty and the bounty of this friendly, rural county, Laurie and Greg bought their home in Three Rivers in 1989 and have greatly enjoyed exploring the Valley, the foothills, and the mountains on foot and by car ever since.  While working in various jobs in Tulare County, and talking with friends and acquaintances, Laurie was struck by how often residents were unaware of the wonders awaiting them practically in their own back yards.  She began the Tulare County Treasures project in hopes of introducing them, and the County's hundreds of thousands of annual visitors, to a truly wonderful legacy of land and people.  Thanks to a great project team, sponsors, and partners, this mission is being accomplished.


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William C. Tweed, a freelance naturalist, historian, and writer, has lived in Three Rivers for over twenty-five years. For many years, Tweed worked as a ranger and later as a park manager at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.  For ten years prior to 2006, he served as the parks' chief naturalist, in charge of educational and informational programs. He has written a column about nature in Tulare County for the Visalia Times-Delta since 1997.



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