Meet Susan
How long have you lived in the Bay Area?
I was born in Berkeley at Alta Bates Hospital and lived in the Bay Area except for about 10 years from my teens to mid-20s. I returned to the East Bay in 1963 and have been here ever since.
I can remember as a kid, loving to see “my” mountain as we came home through the Caldicott Tunnel. I still feel that pleasure when seeing Mount Diablo from any angle.
How did you learn about Save Mount Diablo?
In 1976, we bought a home with two acres in Lafayette, and I became enamored with all the wonderful wildflowers I found wandering around the area. I started volunteering and going on field trips with California Native Plant Society and Tilden Botanic Garden.
During that time, I first heard of Save Mount Diablo and went on a field trip with Mary Bowerman.
We went through a chaparral area burned in the 1977 fire, and I was astounded by the hundreds of Mount Diablo fairy lanterns that had come up amidst the black remains of the manzanitas.
All the people I met, experiences like that field trip, and time spent in the “wild” led me to UC Berkeley and a degree in botany.
When did you start volunteering?
After graduation from Cal, I went to work for the Jepson Herbarium, where I learned more about Mary and her PhD with Willis Linn Jepson on Mount Diablo.
The first project after my hire was the Jepson Manual, a new botanical manual for the state of California slated to be published in 1992.
I had the opportunity to get to know Mary well as she was one of our most helpful supporters of the manual project and became a friend and mentor to me.
I also was fortunate to work with her and Barbara Ertter coordinating the publication of the second edition of The Flowering Plants and Ferns of Mount Diablo, California.
At Mary’s urging and recommendation, I joined the Save Mount Diablo Board and served for a year and a half. My forte is not serving on boards, I’m happiest when out in the field and in nature.
After the publication of the Jepson Manual, Mary was still a part of my life as much as possible.
Which programs are you involved in?
I am now, with my partner, Geoff Bellinger, a steward of the Smith Canyon/ lower 200 Curry Canyon property, and I participate in the Discover Diablo hikes as a hike leader and sweep.
Though I don’t volunteer for Moonlight on the Mountain, I’ve been fortunate to attend for many years, and enjoy going to all the wonderful events Save Mount Diablo holds.
What do you like about the volunteer work you do?
I love to be on the property, checking out the conditions, checking the fences, the flowers in bloom, the animals and insects we see, working to pull invasive weeds and picking up garbage if we find any.
I enjoy being out there with no one else around, it feels like being in early California wide open spaces. And I like to interact with other Save Mount Diablo members and friends on Discover Diablo hikes.
What is the most challenging project you’ve worked on?
Although not really challenging, pulling weeds in a fairly large area near the pond at Curry Canyon Ranch lower 200 acres last year.
It was hot and the ground had been tromped through by cattle when wet so there were large holes to maneuver through. It was very satisfying to see bags crammed with the weeds and the area cleared!
Is there a memorable experience you’ve had as a Save Mount Diablo volunteer?
There are many memorable experiences working with Save Mount Diablo, but the most recent was hiking on the lower 200 acres at Curry Canyon Ranch with Sean and others and seeing a female golden eagle flying low just a few 100 yards away.
She swooped down along the face of the hill we were walking next to, and we all stopped to watch her do her thing. So exciting!
How do you spend your time beyond your volunteer work with us?
I also volunteer for the California Academy of Sciences to help identify some of the backlog of collected plants. I hike as much as possible, am involved in a garden club as program chair, love to go see wildflowers, do tai chi, and travel as much as possible.
