Richard Smart

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Thank you, Richard Smart, Regional Park Superintendent at Stoneview Nature Center, for joining me on today’s episode of the Born To Talk Radio Show Podcast. Richard is part of the LA County Department of Parks and Recreation. Their motto is, Learn, Respect, Appreciate and Protect. The Stoneview Nature Center is one of 8 Nature Centers within the Parks and Recreation in LA County.

Stoneview Nature Center.

To begin with, Stoneview Nature Center is an urban sanctuary nestled in the Blair Hills of Culver City with scenic views of the Los Angeles basin from the Santa Monica Mountains to the Hollywood Hills. This five-acre site offers visitors a chance to discover a new passion for the outdoors, and learn more about health and wellness through meditative garden spaces, inspiring artwork, a demonstration garden, and a community kitchen.

As a result, it’s important that the environment is safe, clean, and inviting. Once you visit, you’ll want to come back.

As Richard explains, his passion for Stoneview, you will understand that this is an Urban Nature Location and Wildlife Sanctuary. He enjoys connecting his staff and the people that visit Tuesday-Sunday. This is not a museum, rather it is a garden attraction, with the opportunity to walk at your leisure and sit a spell. Therefore, take in the sounds of the buzzing bees, sights of the variety of trees, and smells from the gardens.

The center is a key component of the “Park to Playa Trail,” which is a planned corridor that will connect state, county, and city parks into a recreational 13-mile trail from the beach in Playa Del Rey to Baldwin Hills.

Young Naturalist After School Club.

This After School Club is a safe, after-school alternative that provides adventure, nature experience, and natural history education. Activities include group games, STEM, nature hikes, and natural history learning opportunities. Youth will gain confidence in the outdoors and how to appreciate the natural world around them. The age group is 3rd-5th grade from 3:00-5:00 Tuesday through Thursday. Click on this link to register.

What you need to know.

By the way, here’s a perfect way to stay connected to Stoneview via their newsletter. You can subscribe by emailing stoneview@parks.lacounty.gov. Type “subscribe” in the subject line. Check-in with them for programs such as Yoga for all levels and guided urban nature walks.

For more information, Richard also mentioned an app that helps people learn the names of different plants and wildlife they see in real-time. The app is called Seek. By the way, you may not be living anywhere near this beautiful location, but outdoors is still outdoors. Take a moment and discover what’s in your community. There isn’t a better time than now to get outdoors. Fall is here, the gardens are changing, what does it look like where you live??

In closing, Stoneview Nature Center is a community treasure that will inspire understanding, respect, and stewardship of our environment by fostering positive connections with our bodies, our minds, our food, our communities, and our ecosystems. Richard and his staff are there to make that happen for you!

Thank you for joining me, Richard, and spreading your wings!