Saturday, January 20, 2024

Overwhelming Support from 200 Volunteers at the MLK Day Cleanup Event in St. Augustine

On behalf of the West Augustine Nature Society, we want to thank everyone who came out to our 4th annual MLK day cleanup event held on January 15, 2024.

Without the amazing volunteers this event would not be possible.

Everyone who came out to our 2024 St. Augustine cleanup event.

Monday, December 18, 2023

4th Annual MLK Day Cleanup Event in St.Augustine - Come be a Part of Our Community


MLK Day St. Augustine 2024




Save the date! 
Come join us for our 4th annual MLK Day of Service Cleanup event.

● Monday, January 15th, 2024 

● 8-10 A.M. 

● Meet us at 252 N Mc Laughlin St, St. Augustine 

 BRING: Gloves and/or grabber, trash bags, warm clothing & your own water bottle.  

If doing the cemetery clean up, please bring gardening tools, such as rakes, pruners etc.  After the clean up, we invite anyone interested to come join us at the Silent March downtown (Starts at 86 MLK Ave at 10:30 A.M.) to honor and remember Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement in St Augustine. 

We are grateful for the support of our community partners: 

❤ The West Augustine Improvement Association

❤ The St. Augustine Connection

❤ Elizabeth Jennings Real Estate Agent, One Sotheby's International Realty

❤ Kate Mitchell Realtor, One Sotheby's International Realty

❤ Ben & Jerry's St. Augustine 

❤ Dancing Treetops

❤ EarthGuyRye 

❤ Compassionate St Augustine & Good Trouble 

❤ Nu Epsilon Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. 

❤ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints 

❤ Omega Phi Omega of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority  

❤ Primerica Financial Services 

❤ Interact St. Augustine High School

❤ Pie in The Sky

❤ The Rotary Club of St. Augustine Sunrise

❤ Sigma Pi Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.

❤ Beachside High National Honor Society 

❤ St. Joseph Academy Interact Club

We will be cleaning up the streets around the Pinehurst, San Sebastian and Woodlawn cemeteries, and we will be cleaning up inside of the Pinehurst and San Sebastian Cemeteries, two of the oldest African American cemeteries in Florida. 

Treats for our volunteers: 

  • Breakfast is provided by Elizabeth Jennings and Kate Michell from One Sotheby's Realty  
  • Ben & Jerry's got ice cream for our volunteers  
  • Dancing Treetops and EarthGuyRye are giving away free plants.  
  • There will be raffle prizes from the community partners.  

High school students please ask us for volunteer forms. 

If you'd like to get involved in this or future events or donate food, supplies etc. to the events, contact us or the West Augustine Nature Society via messenger or email.

Please share this flyer. It may change as we add more community partners, but we will always have the most updated flyer on the website.





Monday, October 16, 2023

Pinehurst and San Sebastian Cemeteries 5th Restoration Day, October 14, 2023


We want to thank everyone who came out to the Pinehurst and San Sebastian Cemeteries 5th Restoration Day, on Saturday, October 14, 2023, especially our partners The West Augustine Improvement Association, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and The Daughters of the American Revolution as your help made it possible for the restoration of such historic cemeteries, ensuring for the proper upkeep for many years to come, and helping to identify graves which were unmarked and forgotten.



Volunteers helping with the cleanup


At the beginning of the day we started our cleanup around the streets of the cemetery, and then we joined the rest of the volunteers inside of the cemetery.



Students From Beachside High School, St. Augustine, FL

More than 75 volunteers came out to help at the street/cemetery cleanup event, and after the event we all had a BBQ lunch together curtsy of the WAIA and the Cooper family.

Students From Beachside High School, Students From Beachside High School, St. Augustine, FL

  Save the date, MLK day community and cemetery cleanup, January 15, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. 
Location: The big lot on N Mclaughlin St. across from 265 N Mclaughlin St.





Do you get upset when you see our trees being clear cut, removed, and burned?
 Does clearcutting St. Johns County's wooded areas make you mad? 
 St. Johns County has had a 40% decrease in tree cover since 2000 according to Global Forest Watch. 
 You can make a difference! Help save St. Johns County's trees. What can you do? 
 ðŸŒ³ Share the flyer and follow Fish Island Community Alliance 
 ðŸŒ³ Save and share the video (See our feed) 
 ðŸŒ³ Visit www.fishisland33.com to see how you can help. 
 ðŸŒ³ Show up to the Oct 17th, 9 a.m. SJC Commissioner Meeting - wear green or black. 
 ðŸŒ³ Tell friends and family to join the Save St. Johns Trees movement 
 ðŸŒ³ Write an email or a letter to your local commissioner. So important! 
 ● Tell them why we need trees in St. Johns County. 
● Tell them how it makes you feel when you see another area of woodland being clearcut. 
● Tell them why you want St. Johns County to be a tree county.
● Encourage our County Commissioners to update the Land Development Code to:
 • Prevent currently accepted removal of all trees on small lots 
• Increase tree protection on larger lots and in coastal areas
 • Conserve trees in Planned Communities And more...see www.fishisland33.com 

 Call or email Commissioners to support updating the LDC 904-209-0300
 Christian Whitehurst bcc1cwhitehurst@sjcfl.us 
Sarah Arnold bcc2sarnold@sjcfl.us 
Roy Alaimo bcc3ralaimo@sjcfl.us 
Krista Joseph bcc4kjoseph@sjcfl.us 
Henry Dean bcc5hdean@sjcfl.us 

 ðŸŒ³ Get a Save St. Johns' Trees bumper sticker If you cannot be at the county commissioners' meeting on Oct 17th, please help by sharing the video from the St. Augustine Connection and the Save the St. Johns Trees Flyer.
Save St. Johns Trees


Written by Skyler Kai Rodney, 12th grade, St. Augustine High School, President of the West Augustine Nature Society.

Monday, January 16, 2023

Huge turnout at the MLK Day 2023 Clean-Up Event

We would like to thank everyone, who came out to our MLK day clean-up event this year. Even though it was 35 degrees F, when we were setting up with with frost on the grass in the morning, more than 150 people came out to the street/cemetery clean-up event. 

St. Augustine MLK Day Event at the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries.

"Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'" 
Martin Luther King, Jr.

St. Augustine MLK Day Event at the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries.

Saturday, January 14, 2023

Voyage Jacksonville Story

 


We are honored to be featured in Voyage Jacksonville, and we are thankful for the opportunity to be able to tell the story of how the West Augustine Nature Society began and of how our success depends on all of those who have partnered with us over the years and all of the individuals, families, and groups who have come out to help us. We appreciate all the support from everyone over these past years, and we hope y'all have a great new year! We know the title only has our names in it but the West Augustine Nature Society wouldn't be here without all of you guys helping us with each event we host. Be sure to check out the website as well as the story of how the West Augustine Nature Society came to be here at https://voyagejacksonville.com/interview/life-work-with-skyler-kai-emmett-isabella-roshane-paxton-rodney-of-st-augustine-west-augustine/.

Saturday, December 24, 2022

Spreading the Green in the Neighborhood with Plant Gifts for Christmas

West Augustine Nature Society Christmas plant give away


Every year for Christmas the West Augustine Nature Society goes around and gives plant gifts for Christmas to our neighbors to spread the green all around. We plant seeds way ahead of the holiday season to get ready to give plants to our neighbors for Christmas to show how we care about them.