The Lunz Group Representing Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton and Dorchester Counties in South Carolina

Work/service outing Sewee Center and Turtle hatchery Construction, 2005

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How we get from the dock to our work sites out on the beach,. April, 2005 . Photo Karen Besheers.

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Mark, RJ and Sarah with a ATV and trailer loaded with the hatchery top as they prepare to take it down the beach -- they looked a bit like a large dragonfly as they took off!). April, 2005 . Photo Karen Besheers.

Last week four Sierra Club members volunteered to help Cape Romain NWR prepare for the Loggerhead Sea Turtle nesting season on Cape Island. Lucy Maxwell, R.J. Lavergne, Bob Raynor and Mark Johnson came eager to work and learn each day April 27-29 and put in a full day of work! Lucy is a master at placing tag numbers on and painting nest marking poles, while RJ, Bob and Mark are the Master Hatchery Builders!! Through the efforts of these volunteers working with Sarah Dawsey, biologist of Cape Romain, and myself, Cape Island now has three complete hatcheries for 200 loggerhead nests and a fourth hatchery that is over 75% done, over 85 new wire cages are ready and 250 marking poles are waiting for the first nests of the year. These volunteers logged over 96 hours in 3 days, and were able to work on one of the few relatively untouched islands left on our coastline. We were treated to a pod of dolphin frolicking as we docked on Cape and a loggerhead watching from the surf for over 3 hours one day. Everyone had a chance to search for incredible shells during pleasantly warm days with enough wind to keep the bugs at bay.

Thank you for helping us get the word out of the need for volunteers -- we couldn't have asked for a better crew.

Karen Beshears, Exec. Director, SEWEE Association

You missed a great one!

Here is a place where you can read a bit more

http://www.fws.gov/seweecenter/