LaunchSquad

Last Thursday, a group of eight LaunchSquad-ers spent the morning at San Francisco’s Crissy Field working as volunteers as part of an ongoing project to keep the Presidio one of the most beautiful and unique public spaces in the country. We spent three hours in the very rare 90 degree heat pulling weeds and grasses out of a sensitive beach path.

One ongoing discussion as we dug away, sparked by the venerable Green Amy, was how invasive and environmentally wasteful airplane-led advertisements in the sky are. It wasn’t something I had thought about before; these ads may be the most egregious waste of fuel out there. Does Geico (whose ad passed us by a handful of times that morning) really need to partition some of their enormous advertising budget on planes flying over beaches, stadiums and parks? Green Amy will be investigating this topic on her blog later.

It wasn’t the easiest work, but we had a blast and were all grateful for being able to enjoy the spectacular weather. Our guide DeWaine (one of only two Presidio gardeners) was impressed by our work ethic and announced that we had filled 18 large garbage bags with unwanted vegetation, making room for the natural plants and flowers to flourish, and helping to make sure Crissy Field (which DeWaine told us was the first San Francisco airport, opening in 1915) stays one of San Francisco’s wonders.

Look out for more LaunchSquad Volunteer Days throughout the year.