SoCal

We’re excited about A Rocha USA’s Love Your Place program!

Love Your Place helps you deepen the ways you know, love, and care for God’s creation. If you would like to see the work of A Rocha grow in SoCal and the U.S., join us.

We lead several specialized programs that care for people and place.

Current Programs

• Conservation Science Projects.  We monitor Bluebird nestboxes and do beach plastic research. Some science projects are open to the public or groups by arrangement. See more information on the Conservation Science Projects tab.
• Urban Ministry with Pomona Hope: Mark McReynolds runs afterschool creation care workshops in the Center Street Community Garden for this ministry to neighborhood kids. This is environmental education and it’s currently focused on real science observation and reporting on birds. He also assists in the garden and is working to make the sponsor church, First Presbyterian Pomona, more creation-friendly. This is our first Urban Center!  This work has been supported by a generous grant by the Zondervan Foundation. Bird seed is being supplied by the Wild Birds Unlimited in Claremont.
• Speaking and Special Events. Mark McReynolds, A Rocha USA’s SoCal Director, is an ordained pastor and “conservation evangelist” with a seminary degree, a PhD in Environmental Studies, and years of domestic and foreign experience in ministries, camps, and universities. Mark enjoys exploring the territory between Christianity and conservation.

Microplastic Pollution Research @ Crystal Cove State Park

Fieldwork started in November 2020 and ended Dec. 2022. A team of staff and trained volunteers took 24 monthly samples of beach sand to determine how much plastic washes up on the beach. The purpose of the multi-year, permitted, research project was to understand the abundance and spatial distribution of microplastics on the beach of Crystal Cove State Park. Both nurdles (≈ 2-3 mm), raw stock for plastic item manufacturers, and microfragments (< 5 mm), created from breakdown of plastic products, are known hazards to wildlife. Information gathered can be used to develop interpretive material, provide a baseline for understanding changes in the future and possibly assist in determining the source of this pollution.

We analyze the samples in the lab at Hope International University and are in the process of reporting findings. A Phase 2 is being explored in which the three local rivers will be surveyed for nurdles.

The Great Nurdle Hunt 2019 Summary Report

The Abstract of the paper detailing the Sept. 21, 2019 Nurdle Hunt is below.

On September 21, 2019, during a California Coastal Clean Up Day, 26 college students from two universities were instructed in how to locate and collect nurdles – pre-production plastic pellets roughly 2-3mm in diameter and of various chemical compositions and colors. Collection occurred at Pelican Point in Crystal Cove State Beach in Orange County, California. In each of three 15-minute collection sessions, plots were set out at 10m intervals and one student hand-collected nurdles from the surface of each plot. The plots covered a total of 780 linear meters and nurdles (N = 2419) were mostly found next to a cliff which bordered the beach. Each plot’s contents were individually cleaned and counted and then all plot contents were combined, categorized by color and weighed. Milky-white nurdles were most common and categorized as “new” or “old” based on color assumed to be caused by weathering; “new” nurdles were found nearly twice as often as “old” nurdles. Collector efficiency appeared to vary depending on student interest, but analysis found no significant difference in numbers of nurdles collected between those required to participate as a lab exercise and those students who volunteered.

__________________

The Bluebird Nest Box 2020 Season Report – Data: Karen McReynolds, Report: Mark McReynolds

We had 79 fledgling Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) fly from 13 nest boxes in Craig Regional Park in Brea, CA. Bluebirds need artificial nest boxes in this suburban region because there are not enough large trees with cavities for them to build their nests within.

Cleaned empty nest boxes were filled with grass and other fibers by nesting pairs, then came 4-6 pale blue eggs, then hungry nestlings, and eventually an empty nest – the sign of success. This was year three of monitoring and it had lower numbers of fledglings despite no losses due to ants or excessive heat.

Five pairs double-clutched – they had two nests of eggs in the season. These pairs contributed 53 (56.38%) of the 94 eggs laid and 45 (56.96%) of the 79 total fledged, however they also averaged 9 fledglings/pair, while the 8 single-clutch pairs averaged 4.5 fledglings per pair. The maximum fledged from one box was 6 from Box 12 in a second clutch and the minimum was 2 from Box 4. A 2020 Report has been made, if interested send an email to mark.mcreynolds@arocha.org.

Karen McReynolds, Project Lead, loves these beautiful birds and uses the nest box monitoring to introduce science and care for God’s creation to people in a very real and satisfying way. She will continue to monitor bluebird nest boxes for the foreseeable future, and monitoring dates for next year will be posted so others may join. Karen says, “It’s a great way to connect with people and it is a joy to see these creatures appear and grow and fly away, doing what God intended for them to do. Helping them out a bit is a privilege”. The next season begins in March 2021 – come visit; we are looking for more volunteers.

Karen McReynolds is an Associate Professor of Science at Hope International University where she is the lead science instructor and teaches Environmental Science, Biology and Earth Science. Research is conducted in association with the Southern California Bluebird Club that monitors hundreds of these nest boxes throughout Orange County.

The City Center is a Reality. For three years we have been dreaming of two complementary bases for A Rocha USA’s SoCal project: City and Wild Centers for Ministry & Conservation.

A Rocha USA’s SoCal Pomona City Center is a partnership with the ministry of Pomona Hope and First Presbyterian Church Pomona. Our work consists of environmental education classes for community children through Pomona Hope, assistance with the Center Street Community Garden (across the street), and the greening of the church that supports all this. Mark explains in a video.

A Rocha has partnered with Pomona Hope to enrich the lives of at-risk, primarily Hispanic students. 2019 US Census information says Pomona is 72% Hispanic with 18% of its residents at or below the poverty level. COVID-19 has surely pushed more people into poverty. Pomona has several gang options so education and spiritual guidance provide an alternative and a way out of the poverty cycle. Pomona Hope has worked for 17 years with these youth and their families “toward personal and community transformation” and that aligns very well with our mission “to restore people and places”.

Pomona Hope runs its free programs from a large, three story, 1930’s Sunday School and Fellowship Hall, which in its heyday, was filled by the many hundreds of members of the big downtown First Presbyterian Church. Now church membership is near 60, but is generally young in age, and they describe themselves as “an urban missional church”. The church’s mission emphasis allows several ministries/non-profits, including A Rocha USA’s SoCal project, to use rooms in what is now called the Education Building.

Spring 2021 brought bird nest boxes, a bird feeding station, and a weather station to the Center Street Garden across from Pomona Hope. These projects were used to help the Pomona Hope students  students to learn more about and value God’s creation. Early summer brought a three-week session: Hike, Camp, Cook. REI in Cucamonga supplied freeze-dried backpacking food for the kids. Themes in 2022 and 2023 were Habitat and Animals.

Still Needed: A Wild Center

A Rocha USA’s SoCal Wild Center would have a big house and outbuildings on 40-200 acres that backed up onto national forest or other wild areas. A stream would run through it and the area would have animals and plants that need scientific study and conservation protection. Staff, interns and volunteers could provide the community base for conservation in a place of beauty and spiritual refreshment. Scientists, school kids and people on retreat would all be welcomed here. In working with all of creation, Wild Center staff would also assist in our City Center.

How might this Wild Center happen? A landowner, or their family, might think “We want our land preserved and we can’t do that, but we won’t give it to just any environmental group, A Rocha is our kind of conservation.” Maybe a Christian camp could continue their ministry in concert with A Rocha USA, SoCal. Contact us if you know of a landowner that is looking for preservation and ministry on their property that might fit our needs. Please keep your ears, eyes and prayers out there.

We are dreaming as we pray for God to make these Centers happen, but the City Center has started already! We also know that God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to God’s power that is at work within us. To God be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” Eph. 3:20-21.