|
2009 in Review: A Message from Executive Director, John Valencia
Congratulations, we made it! Even with a turbulent economic year, SDOF was successful in achieving and surpassing our goals for 2009!
During the past year, SDOF celebrated its 25th anniversary, doubled membership, increased staff, and improved our programs. We are grateful for new partnerships with local companies that enable us to make a bigger impact on our community.
In 2009, our volunteers, members and sponsors have enabled us to:
- Educate and inspire over 1,000 local children with regards to marine science and conservation
- Complete 195 underwater surveys to increase our understanding of the marine environment
- Host 8 continuing education events for volunteers, members and other interested parties to learn more about marine-related research and conservation efforts
- Raise and release nearly 27,000 white seabass to ensure the survival of this native Southern California species
- Help protect valuable marine life by removing 571 lbs of harmful debris from San Diego Bay during California Coastal Cleanup Day
- Monitor 19 of our urban canyons for potential breaks in the sewer systems that run throughout, keeping our beaches and bays safe for everyone
- Stencil over 250 storm drains to raise awareness about how inland activities affect the health of coastal waters
- Coordinate 19 internships and provide important volunteering projects for 563 members of our community
We would not be successful without the help of this past year's volunteers. Although this is a long list, everyone is important and deserves to be recognized!
Thank you to all of our volunteers for 2009: Edmond Abnoosian, Lindsay Adkins, Christina Aguilera, Marya Ahmad, Rolando Almanzar, Richard Alvarado, Sandra Always, David Ambrose, David Andrew, Tina Angeles, Edwin Antus, Josh Antus, Kathy Antus, Heather Aranha, Jeffery Arbenz-Smith, Corinne Arnold, Laura Arnold, Sheri Arnold, Laurieanne Askinazy, Karen Askeland, Neal Atkinson, Vasista Avvaru, Lacey Bachan, Leylla Badeanlou, Josh Baker, Tara Rachelle Baker, Emma Ballard, Bonnie Banh, Basam Barkho, Kevein Bayan, Michael Bear, Jessy Bell, Lucy Bell, Darren Bennett, Alana Benzel, Kyna Beresh, Rafael Beresh, Jesse Bernal, Robert Bertino, Crystal Bessette, Noel Bessette, Jenn Bethe, Jim Beyster, Luke Bitton, Ellen Bjork, Jennifer Black, Josh Blessing, Duane Bogard, Mark Boiskin, Khalisa Boling, Alison Borman, Parker Bouakham, Vilayvanh Bouakham, Don Boudreaux, James Bourdon, Zabrina Bowman, Ricky Boyd, Roger Bradley, Brenda Bridgett, Sara Briley, Mark Brinkerhoff, Erica Bromby, Sharon Brooks, Chelsie Brown, Fred Brown, Ashwin Budden, Rupert Burg, Nicholas Burgess, Ed Burke, Evan Burke, Matt Burnes, Chris Burns, Kaila Burton, Rich Burton, Ron Burton, Jessica Busk, Blaine Butcher, Robert Butterfield, Emma C. W., Joel Cacho, Spencer Caldwell, Abbigail Cannon, Jose Cano, Staci Cardinal, Karin Carpenter, Kim Carrol, Chanel Casayuran, Candice Casillas, Tommy Castellanos, Jesse Castro, John Cawvey, Ceci Cazares, Amy Chadwick, Janita Chalam, David Chambers, Sophie Chambers, Lee Chang, Gabrielle Chavis, Amy Chen, Lianne Chun, Debi Clark, Teryl Clark, Jim Clevinger, Briana Clugston, Mary Coakley, Elena Collantes, Molly Colvin, Megan Copley, Nick Cordero, Jeremy Cox, Marc Crocker, Will Cronan, Ray Cuizon, Ryan Cuizon, Pam Culley-Mccullough, Diane Cullins, Ben Dahlin, Christopher Dallaglio, Dan Dalton, Michael Damiano, Scarlet Damiano, Marci Danielson, Neil Darling, Celeste Davie, Marta Elena Davila, Katie Dayton, Paul Dayton, Elly De La Vega, Maria De Oca, Dawn De Stefano, Merrianne Dean, Tom Decarlo, Stevi Dehoog, Jennifer Demarzio, Madison Demarzio, Halsie Donaldson, Gregory Dros, Debbie Durbin, Austin Eaves, Kelli Eddy, Patrick Edusada, Patty Egolf, Rima Ellis, Bob Elkin, Brad Erisman, Doug Ernst, Kim Ernst, Luke Eskew, Nicholas Estrada, John Evans, Event Master Photography, Christina Falcone, Kian Falcone, Sarah Fales, Laura Fantozzi, Alex Feck, Darlene Fengler, Scott Finan, Anne Fisher, Peggy Fleury, Frank Flores, Laura Foley, Camille Fowler, David Frankle, Anna Freed, Corey Froelich, Dale Frost, Monica Fuentes, Ryan Gamble, Nancy Yabo Gao, Amanda Gapud, Dave Garcia, Steve Gardner, David Garem, Amber Gillett, Noemi Giraud, Jill Giraud, Padmaja Godavariny, Alex Goldberg, Judith Goldberg, Lauren Goldberg, Julian Golder, Mike Goldman, Arianna Gomez, John Gonnerman, Javier Gonzalez, Kristen Goodrich, Pramodh Gopal, Pat Gower, Kimberly Grauer, Fiona Graves, Ken Green, Jim Greenlee, Laura Greenlee, Jeannie Greenmaki, Aaron Gregoroff, Marguerite Grifka, Todd Groessl, Herb Gruenhagen, Lisa Gunner, Gene Gurganus, Tyane Guy, Brian Hamlin, Paul Hammond, Brandon Haney, John Haney, Giovanni Hanna, James Hansen, Larry Harris, Ruth Harris, Samantha Harrod, Gary Hawkins, Angelo Haynes, Ashley Hedger, Mike Hedman, Magdalena Heffernan, Walter Heim, Chris Henson, Eric Hernandez, Megan Herr, Liz Hetherington, Timothy Higgins, Marylou Hildebrand, Bob Hillis, Edison Hinayhinay, Marcela Holguin, Jason Holic, Geoffrey Honda, Chris Hopkins, Kevin Hovel, Sarah Hsu, John Huber, Graham Hufford, Yvonne Hunt, Toni Huynh, Melin Isa, Nerissa Jack, Han Jang, Dria Jewell, Brian Johnson, Hannah Johnson, Linda Johnson, Matt Johnson, Rob Johnson, Larry Jones, Michelle Jones, Rebecca Kanter, Michelle Kao, Rachel Kao, Gautham Karadi, Deborah Kearney, Chloe Kelsey, Stephenie Kennedy, Brian Kimener, Stephen Kimener, Jim Kinane, Whitney Kirk, David Klein, Natalia Kleinaitis, Laura Knopp, John Knox, John Kopinski, Chaptan Kosman, Norma Jean Kreischer, Heather Krish, Kristin Kuhn, Wei Ling Kwok, Ming Lai, Phillip Lajoie, Kathryn Lang, Michael Latz, Peter Lauterbach, Marieanne Lawrence, John Lawton, Lorenda Lee, Nikkolai Leonardo, Jami Leslie, Hoffman Leung, Kim Leung, George Liddle, Brenda Lindroff, Jahmelia Lindsal, Barbara Lloyd, Fabian Lomeli, Deirdre Lonergan, Betty Lopez-Richardson, Melissa Lozano, Anita Lozsa, Eva Lu, Theo Lundblade, Jesse Macchio, Shanda Magill, Steve Mair, Jon Major, Kelly Makley, Melissa Mamayek, Doug Manatt, Angela Manatt, Kevin Manion, Sue Manion, Sharon Manzuk, Rachelle Marcon, Jose Maria, Allison Marklein, Elena Marquez, Gina Martinez, Marla Matin, Dan Matthews, Fielder Mattox, Carl Mayhugh, Rachel Siuki Mbassa, Mary Mccormick, Erica Mcdaniel, Devon Mcgurk, Chelsea McKie, Matt Meier, Erin Melton, Shwetha Menon, Amber Merriman, Jordan Meyer, Jennifer Meyers, Briana Mille, Sandy Miller, Vanessa Mills, Monica Miramontes, Perla Miramontes, Kim Mitchell, Rebecca Molin, Lisa Molino, Victoria Molino, Raleigh Moody, Mario Moreno, Briana Morillo, Whitney Morris, Travis Moyer, Jim Muluihill, Shannon Muluihilll, Joel Murphy, Deborah Namdar, Marisa Neighbors, Emil Neveraz, Garrett Ng, Liem Nguyen, Brian Nisbet, Patti Nisbet, John Norris, John Nowoslawski, Keelin O'Brien, Ryan O'Carroll, Derrek Ocampo, Lauren Ochsner, Amber Odhner, Mark Okihiro, Brian Olfato, Scott Oliver, Bent Olsen, Scott Opteynot, Jennifer Orlando, Todd Pacofsky, Wendy Pacofsky, Kaaren Page, Sarah Palmer, Elias Paraiso, Heather Paraiso, Jesse Paraiso, Joe Paraiso, Natalie Paraiso, Nick Padron, Chanelle Patnode, Jessie Patton, Delmar Peacher, Adiseshu Peesapati, Phani Peesapati, Ashley Pellegrini, Dan Pepin, Bob Pepping, Jeffrey Perdio, Gaylene Perkins, Katie Perkins, Dale Peterson, Torben Pielke, Janet Pinterits, Joe Pitz, Melissa Potter, Bill Powers, Stacey Powers, Steve Preddy, Emily Price, Dan Prosperi, Simon Prout, Michael Quidort, Gregory Quinto, Marvin Rabanal, Maria Radazar, Lucia Randall, Anneke Raney, Cheryl Rattner-Price, Barbara Rays, Erin Reed, Mike Reed, Megan Reitz, Billy Restis, Maya Restis, Lucille Richard, Shawn Richardson, James Ridgeway, Sheila Rivera, Mario Roberts, Tony Roberts, William Roberts, Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry, Jr., Mike Rodgers, Stephenie Rodriguez, Joslyn Rogers, Xan Rogers, Ivette Roman, Jamie Romero, Kristina Ros, Joseph Rosa, Walter Rosencrans, Ken Roth, Heather Rothbard, Scott Rothbard, Pam Rubush, Sophia Ruiz, Sima Saadat, Nizar Salha, Steve Sallis, Amy Salvato, Julie Salvato, Peter Salvato III, Peter Salvato Jr., Chris Samaritoni, Shelley Samaritoni, Holly Sanderson, Mike Sanderson, Maxine Sandoval, Karen Santo-Pietro, Jit Sarkar, Carrie Scheuneman, Kurt Schinder, Mardie Schroeder, Jay Schwartz, Rebecca Schwartz, Brittany Schwartzkopf, Anna Schwinger, Noel Scruggs, Sara Seacat, Kristina Seitz, Jeffrey Seminoff, Bruce Shaw, Keeley Shaw, Kelli Shaw, Nick Shaw, Abbie Shepherd, Ryan Sibbald, Theresa Siega, Susan Sirota, Parth Sitlan, Vincent Siu, Alex Smith, Steve Smith, Ashley Smithey, Tony So, John Soto, Tarik Soudani, Sarrah Sparks, Cyndi Sperry, Shanthini Srinivasan, Nick Stanford, Gregory Stearns, Christine Steichen, Natasha Stenbock, Ben Stone, Megan Stone, Terry Strait, Shawn Styles, Diksha Sudarshan, Becky Suffridge, Linda Suokko, Stephanie Sullivan, Ron Suokko, Cami Svitenko, David Swanson, Marvin Tajalle, Rowena Tajalle, Derek Tarr, Will Taylor, Alex Terzian, Haley Thibeault, Lori Thibeault, Roland Thibeault, Saundra Thibeault, Amy Thomas, Bodhi Thomas, Lorne Thomas, Taylor Thomas, Trudy Thomas, Jim Thornley, Andrea Thornquist, Carl Tillander, Miko Tokuhama-Olsen, Julian Torres, Jeannine Toy, Jackie Tran, Jean-Huy Tran, Oanh Tran, Ken Trapp, Miguel Trinidad, Stephanie Truhlar, Charles Tu, Spencer Tuck, Kristen Turner, Alan Underkofler, Jim Unger, Alison Urban, Gayle Van Leer, Neva Van Loton, Annette Velasco, Alejandro Velazquez, Cynthia Velazquez, Elena Villasenor, Gio Villegas, Joanna Villegas, Michele Vinz, Erico Vo, Vincent Vo, Alison Vredenburgh, Joe Vredenburgh, Eli Waddell, Andy Wahlsten, Nate Wahlsten, Linna Wang, Sarah Watanaskul, Vinny Watson, Dani Weir, Justin Weststeyn, Alyssa Wheelock, Blair White, Jeff White, Robert Whitefaid, Joe Williams, Jillian Wills, Wingate & Company, Inc., Gerald Winkel, Bryan Wold, Diane Wold, Jill Wong, Jason Woolery, Casey Wright, Jacqueline Wright, Xiaoguang Wu, Mikaela Wundrow, Shane Wundrow, Medy Wundrow, Greg Wyraz, Corey Wyrick, Daniel Yanagi, Lena Yoe, Jimmy Yuan, Anthony Zertuche, Yazmin Zertuche, and Ruilin Zhang!
Will your name be in the list of volunteers for 2010? I sure hope so!
Thank you so very much,
John Valencia
Executive Director
Give a Day, Get a Day with Disneyland Resorts!
In celebration of volunteerism, Disney is offering a free day’s admission to the first 1,000,000 guests who volunteer their time in 2010. Fortunately for everyone, the San Diego Oceans Foundation has been chosen as a participating organization, and anyone who volunteers with us is eligible for this amazing gift! The “Give a Day, Get a Day” promotion is designed to reward those who take time out to give back to their communities. In the coming year, you’ll have the chance to do just that! By participating in a wide variety of projects with SDOF, you will not only get that warm feeling that comes with volunteering, but you’ll also get to go to the ‘Happiest Place on Earth’ just for helping out! How can it get any better than that?
For more information on how to get involved, actively participate in the conservation of our coastal resources AND ride the Matterhorn in the Magic Kingdom, contact volunteer@sdoceans.org.
Note: You must pre-register and sign up for eligible volunteer opportunities at DisneyParks.com (beginning January 1, 2010). Ticket quantities for this program are limited and you must be at least 6 years old in order to participate. As always, other terms and conditions do apply.
Adopt a White Seasbass Today
 SDOF recently launched our 'Adopt a White Seabass' program! One of the most popular volunteer opportunities with SDOF is our White Seabass Restoration Project. Annually, volunteers help raise and release thousands of fish that live in our pens. Now is your chance to adopt one of these special little critters.
For only $5, you can adopt a white seabass, name it, and help ensure it succeed in the wild! Now you can adopt fish and give them to your friends and family - and help raise awareness about our program.
Click here to visit our ONLINE ADOPTION CENTER
|
We at SDOF would like to take a moment to honor Bob Hillis, a long-time Reef Monitoring Volunteer, for his invaluable support of our oceans. Bob is a Southern California resident committed to furthering our understanding of the marine environment! Having completed 155 underwater surveys since 2006 (and 46 this year alone), Bob has continued to strengthen his connection to the sea while providing indispensible information for nonprofit organizations, fisheries management agencies and the public in general. 
Because of this, I am very appreciative of the symbiotic partnership that SDOF has formed with 
California’s aquaria share a common mission: to promote understanding, appreciation and conservation of our oceans. Visit us at the 
Would you like your child(ren) to learn about all of the amazing things our waters have to offer? SDOF’s mobile 
Earn money for SDOF when you use your Ralphs Rewards Card. It's simple to setup and each swipe helps to support our programs!
If you set your default search browser to GoodSearch.com and select the San Diego Oceans Foundation as your charity of choice, we will receive a penny for every click! Some nonprofits make over $5,000 a year. It is simple to use and helps support our programs.
You can sell anything you would like on eBay and a portion of your choice will be donated to support the San Diego Oceans Foundation! 
