Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/339902
14 LIVE IT UP! SUNDAY, JUNE 29, 2014 SANTA CRUZ SENTINEL Seymour Marine Discovery Docent Tom Townsend Midwestern boy becomes ocean aficionado G rowing up in the Midwest, Tom Townsend learned very little about the ocean environ- ment. So, after moving to Santa Cruz nearly 20 years ago, he decided the best way to find out what's going on off the coast of Central Cali- fornia was to ask the experts. First Townsend be- came involved in Save Our Shores (SOS), a Santa Cruz-based non- profit organization fo- cused on citizen action, advocacy and aware- ness around coastal conservation and clean water. Through SOS, he learned about the Sey- mour Marine Discovery Center, a learning cen- ter which is part of the Long Marine Laborato- ry, a renowned research facility affiliated with UC Santa Cruz (UCSC). Townsend signed up for their 11-week training program and emerged an informed docent. "There I was, a Midwestern boy," says Townsend, 66, "going out to the tide pools with the guy who wrote the book used in most universities across the country. I was climbing around, getting wet with him and looking at all the creatures. This kind of experience doesn't come about every day." Although what was once a week is now every other week plus special events, Townsend continues to volunteer for the Discovery Center as a docent, greeting the public as they come into the Center, and ed- ucating them on what they'll find there. "Our our volunteers are incredibly vibrant, smart folks who are re- ally on it," says Seymour Center Director Julie Barrett Heffington. " Our volunteer program is over 30 years old, and many volunteers have been with us for more than 20 years, which is remarkable. Yet, it's not for everybody. Volun- teers must log in eight hours a month, year round. They go through rigorous training and meet high expecta- tions. Our docents have more than 100 hours of training and have to pass an exam, which most people do because they are so passionate about the ocean. They now can get UCSC credit for their training." Townsend is a CPA, who finds the Seymour Center just the place to get away during the busy tax season."I get to talk with interest- ing people I wouldn't otherwise meet," says Townsend, "and share something really important with them. Here I am, educating people about the Marine Sanctuary and the importance of con- serving it. A Midwest boy became a bit of a California Coast expert. Isn't that amazing?" by Lisa Crawford Watson