Readers' corner 05/16/08

Thanks volunteers

The Annual RSVP Volunteer Recognition will be held today at St. Canice Center in Nevada City.

More than 200 volunteers and guests will enjoy lunch, compliments of Quail Ridge Senior Living, and entertainment by the Hula School of Grass Valley.

Each year, RSVP recognizes the dedication and hard work of 500 volunteers who contribute so much to our community - more than 75,000 hours each year at our schools, libraries, the hospital and law enforcement agencies. They also support the thrift shops, senior nutrition and visiting programs, food banks and many other local agencies.

To learn more about volunteer opportunities, call RSVP at 271-0255 or watch for their announcements that appear often in The Union.

Careful with the Ducks, please

Jennifer Love has been having wonderful times at the Trout Derby, held each year at Lions Lake by the Grass Valley Sportsmen's Club. She's been taking her four boys there for 16 years, and they enjoy the lake and the wildlife all year long.

So Jennifer was upset when they returned the evening after the April 26 derby and her 8-year-old found a bull frog with red marks on its mouth and leg joints. She wondered if someone at the derby might have injured the frog.

The boys also found a nest of eggs - and a dead duck and two ducklings nearby, partly buried.

"On May 2, we all went back to fish a little bit more," Jennifer writes. "Next to other resting ducks was a dead one, showing no sign of struggle, as if it had been shot or hit with a rock."

Any thoughts on how to protect the ducks? Fisherfolk have been snagging the turtles, too.

Readers' Corner is compiled by The Union staff. To submit items, e-mail them to readers@theunion.com, and put "RC" and your topic in the subject line, or call 477-4230.