Phyllis Goddard is LMVA’s Volunteer of the Year, which is awarded in part to the person giving the most hours of service to LMVA this past year. Phyllis has been an important part of LMVA, and her name always brings a smile to those that know her.

Since joining our organization in 1988, she and her husband, Bill, have donated many hours to LMVA--and in a larger sense, to the community of San Diego. Phyllis has focused on interpretive services, where she leads Laguna campfire programs, nature hikes, and special mountain craft projects and field trips designed for children.

Her soft spot for kids shows in her commitment to helping them appreciate their surroundings. She developed the LMVA Junior Ranger Program, which encourages children to carefully observe what’s on the mountain. After completing the questions in the Ranger booklet, they are rewarded with a sense of accomplishment and a Junior Ranger badge.

Those of you who have hiked in the Lagunas with the “little yellow book” have benefited from Phyllis’ revision of the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area hiking trails booklet, on sale at the Visitor Information Center. It bears her mark of lyrical yet accurate detail of the local flora and fauna. “As a retired teacher, I chose to be involved in activities that provided a learning situation for visitors. I started working in the Visitor Information Center, then assisted on nature walks in order to learn all I could about the habitat, our wildlife, plants, geology and history of the area.” says Phyllis.

Phyllis is indeed a source of local history, and enjoys sharing her knowledge with others. She has participated in LMVA’s Living History program where she portrays a farmer’s wife from Imperial Valley in the early 1900s. This venue is a real hit with visitors because they get to sample her sourdough bread, chokecherry preserves, and watch her spin fleece into yarn.

Whether it’s as an LMVA board member, Interpretive Services Committee Chair, or program leader handing you the peanut butter to make a pinecone bird feeder, Phyllis is always looking for ways to enhance Laguna visitors’ enjoyment of the area. She teamed up with Marty Frost and others to bring Roving Rangers to the Laguna Mountain campgrounds, instituted a cowboy coffee program for bleary-eyed campers, and organized an off-district trip to Big Bear Interpretive Center to hunt for new ideas for interpretive services here at home.

Phyllis is quick to add that “I have had the help of Bill Goddard, many LMVA members (especially Winnie Heath who steered her into Interpretive Services early on), and Forest Service staff. I have been richly rewarded by the enthusiasm of the forest visitors when they have discovered interesting things about our forest.”

Bill and Phyllis have lived on Laguna Mountain since 1989 in a cabin originally purchased by Phyllis’ parents in 1951. These two operate as a pair. It’s not surprising to round the corner and find them chopping wood for the Roost Volunteer Headquarters, painting a fence, or simply chatting with visitors at the VIC

Thanks Phyllis!