We first met Jim Mitchell and his wife, Francie, a few years ago when another client generously recommended us to them. Since that time, not only have we been fortunate to add the Mitchells as valued clients to our practice, but we have been lucky to get to know them both personally.
This blog will focus on Jim, because what’s not to love about a surfing scientist? If you are fortunate enough to have time to chat with Jim, you will realize that he truly embodies the spirit of work hard, play hard, as well as leaving the planet in better shape for others after having been here.
Francie, Daniel, Beth and Jim Mitchell
Above Tioga Pass in Yosemite looking South toward Mt Dana and the Lyle Canyon
Jim, tell us a little bit about yourself.
I am a native of the Bay Area, born in Oakland, raised in Orinda, now living in Alamo. I am a graduate of UC Berkeley and Cal State Sacramento holding degrees in both Biochemistry and Chemistry. I work in Research and Development at the Clorox Company where I have spent the last 30 years. Over the years I have worked on everything from Clorox Bleach and Kingsford Charcoal to Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing and Brita Water Filters. I have also spent time in Clorox Marketing Research, Business and Technology Acquisitions, and Business Process Development. My wife, Francie, also works at Clorox as a leader of our International IS organization. I am the proud father of our two children, Beth who graduated last year from the University of Washington, and Daniel who is attending DVC.
I grew up in a family that loved the outdoors including hiking, camping, and fishing. We have family pictures showing my grandfather with a Model T Ford all packed up and ready to take the family on a camping trip to Yosemite when my mother was a baby close to 90 years ago! We have continued the tradition, spending most of our family vacations camping, fly fishing, SCUBA diving, surfing and kayaking. I have a great love of the outdoors and have recently found myself very interested in conservation efforts to preserve local parklands for the future.
Tell us about the Mt. Diablo Interpretive Association (MDIA) and how you came to be involved.
The Mount Diablo Interpretive Association (MDIA) is a nonprofit volunteer organization which assists the California Department of Parks and Recreation in maintaining and interpreting Mt. Diablo State Park for its 700,000 visitors each year. Through a continuing program of education, MDIA fosters appreciation and enlightened use of the State Park. MDIA works in close cooperation with the park staff under the State Volunteers in The Parks program to train and manage docents for the Summit and Mitchell Canyon Visitor Centers, develop and produce publications like the new Mt. Diablo Trail Map, Mt. Diablo Wildflowers book, Common Birds of Mt. Diablo, and Mt. Diablo Guide, run the Junior Ranger Program, and maintain trails. In addition, MDIA raises funds for investment in the park through merchandising publications at the visitor centers and in local book and sports stores.
MDIA has about 400 members and has received past support from many local companies through their foundations and gift programs. Given the status of the California state budget, the importance of MDIA has become critical in the past several years in keeping the park open and supporting the park staff in providing services to park visitors. Since MDIA operates through volunteers with no paid staff, essentially all money raised goes directly back into providing services for Mt. Diablo State Park. Most people do not know that park entrance fees go back into the state’s general fund and do not necessarily flow back into the park they are using or for that matter any state park at all. Many of our state parks now depend on cooperating associations similar to MDIA to provide needed money and services to keep our parks fully functional. In fact there are now more volunteers working at Mt. Diablo State Park than park staff.
MDIA has had major recent involvement in projects like the construction of the Mitchell Canyon Visitor Center, development of interpretive panels and creation of the Trail Through Time, interpretive panels for the Mary Bowerman Trail, and installation of park benches along Mitchell Canyon Road. In addition, we have funded and helped develop a virtual tour of Mount Diablo and an audio tour of the Mary Bowerman Trail that can be downloaded to an iPod or MP3 player from the MDIA website.
I originally found out about MDIA at the park. I contacted the organization and found myself quickly absorbed by the work. I became a park docent, member of the MDIA board of directors, board secretary, Vice President and now President. I was originally attracted to the group because of the work it does but found the people in the organization equally energizing. They all have a passion for the park and making the visitors’ experience the best it can be.
Jim Mitchell, President, MDIA
What part do you have in this organization now and what does that entail?
Being President of the Association is in a lot of ways like running a small business. MDIA has a 16 member board that meets monthly and four officers that meet regularly. The board and officers are indispensable in keeping the organization running and are MDIA’s most valuable assets. Most of the board members lead specific programs that, like any programs, need tracking and funding. There are financial statements to review, Federal and State Tax documents to prepare, insurance to arrange for, and contracts with many of our publishers and printers to approve.
I serve as the key connection to the district park superintendent and park staff. I am also the key connection to several other important park advocacy groups including the California State Parks Foundation, and California Association of Cooperative Park Associations. As President I am also asked to do outreach to community organizations, as well as write articles for our newsletters and local papers. This last month I represented MDIA at Park Advocacy Day in Sacramento where, with the State Park Foundation, I visited with many our local representatives as an advocate for state parks to urge them to continue to fight for park funding. I am happy to report that all of our local representatives are loyal supporters of Mount Diablo State Park and several run and hike the mountain regularly.
As a volunteer in the park, I spend some weekends as a docent at the Mitchell Canyon Visitor Center (unfortunately I have not been able to trace the name of Mitchell Canyon to any of my ancestors), leading hikes, and performing some trail maintenance that helps keep me in shape. Having grown up somewhat jealous of Yosemite National Park naturalists, this gets me about as close as I can get to that fantasy.
I think a lot of us have read about Save Mount Diablo, but perhaps fewer of us know about MDIA. What are the key differences in your organizations? Do you join efforts and collaborate on any issues?
MDIA and SMD are both nonprofit organizations that cooperate closely to support Mount Diablo State Park and are involved in fund raising, however, by design our missions are different. SMD is focused on obtaining property that could eventually become part of Mount Diablo State or East Bay Regional Park land. They are also involved in public policy, permitting, and land use issues adjacent to park lands to insure the proper buffer zones exist and that land near parks is used appropriately.
MDIA’s mission is to work within the park to provide interpretive material and support park staff to enhance the visitors’ experience in the park. Both organizations work together and both need to raise funds to meet their missions. MDIA and SMD both hope that individuals who love Mount Diablo become members of both organizations and contribute to both so that we can fully meet our goals.
What are the biggest challenges your organization faces at this time?
As with all organizations of this type, it should be no surprise that funding is our largest challenge. I think most everyone in California has heard that the Governor has proposed closing all State Parks as a means to help balance California’s budget. While everyone agrees that the state’s budget needs a lot of work, closing State Parks would be only a drop in the bucket to finding a solution. In fact, State Parks generate money for the State Budget and, as important, generate tax money for local community governments that are needed to fund local services. The State Parks and Recreation Department has become more and more dependent on volunteer organizations like MDIA to support many of the park services. And organizations like MDIA have become more and more dependent on funds raised from individual members and local companies. MDIA is very lucky to have loyal members who renew their membership every year and make important donations to MDIA.
Is there any truth to the rumor that the name "Mt. Diablo" will be changed someday?
MDIA is not involved in any of these decisions but it appears from watching the news that the name Mount Diablo will remain in place for a long time. There are several stories about how Mt. Diablo got its name but the one considered closest to the truth is the following.
Like many other isolated peaks, Mt. Diablo is steeped in lore - much of it involving the mountain’s name. The reference to "Diablo" can be traced back to 1804 or 1805, when a Spanish military expedition visited the area in search of "runaway" mission Indians. At a willow thicket near present day Buchanan Field, the soldiers encountered a Village of Chupcan people and surrounded it. But night came, and evidently all the Indians escaped, unseen. Angry and confused, the Spanish called the site "Monte del Diablo," or "Thicket of the Devil." Later, English-speaking newcomers mistakenly assumed the word "Monte" to mean "mountain", and applied the title to this prominent East Bay peak. A linguistic accident thus gave California its Mount Diablo.
What events or projects are coming up that we might be interested in?
The most significant project that we are involved in is happening right at the summit of the mountain this summer as the Summit Visitor Center and Museum is being completely remodeled. Most visitors to the park head directly to the 3,849 foot summit for its spectacular views. The Summit Visitor Center and the viewing deck is where most visitors end up. In fact the summit of the mountain is actually inside the visitor center. The outside of the famous stone summit building will remain the same but the interior is being redesigned with new displays, interactive modules, computer kiosk, and reading room. The mock ups I have seen of the design are gorgeous with craftsman style cabinetry and wood framed display cases.
MDIA is currently raising funds for a significant part of the renovation which includes the computer kiosk, interpretive material for the displays, photographs that will be placed throughout the visitor center, and much of the hardware that will be used in the docent area. We are very excited to see this project move ahead. If anyone is interested in donating to this specific project or works for a company that would be interested in donating they simply have to contact me through the MDIA website www.MDIA.org. All donors will be recognized on a plaque that will be displayed at the summit and in our newsletters.
MDIA sponsors events on the mountain at regular intervals including guided hikes, the Junior Rangers Program, and membership meetings. We also provide opportunities for people to volunteer in the park throughout the year but more specifically on Earth Day and National Public Lands Day. All information can be found on our website.
For those who might wish to become more involved, what would you recommend?
First, join MDIA! It is inexpensive and a little goes a long way in this organization.
Second, donate through personal giving and corporate programs. MDIA accepts restricted funds that can target a specific project in the park of personal interest and general funds that go to the most immediate need. As mentioned above, we are now collecting funds specifically for the Summit Museum remodel and will be recognizing all donations of a significant size in the visitor center as well as in our newsletters. We are targeting local companies that might want to donate larger amounts and get recognition for their support of the park. The Summit Renovation Project will be a significant accomplishment and we will be looking forward to a public opening ceremony later in the summer.
Third, volunteer! Interested individuals can contact me directly at mitchell.mdia@gmail.com or go to the MDIA website to find out about all the opportunities available to volunteer in the park. Volunteer training is conducted monthly by park staff and MDIA. After the completion of training, volunteers can choose from a number of activities that take place during the weekend and on weekdays.
By the way, MDIA is currently looking specifically for individuals interested in running our small wholesale business or leading our membership committee.
And for those of you with some tech savvy, right now MDIA is also looking for someone with website design experience to lead a major redo of the MDIA website. The current software is old and to build both our audio and virtual tour capability we would like to completely redesign the website using new software. This is a significant project that could take a full year to accomplish. If interested, please let me know: mitchell.mdia@gmail.com.
I can’t think of a better way to end this blog than with Jim’s final thoughts to us:
While we would love for everyone to join MDIA, donate, and volunteer, it is also important to simply enjoy the park. Get out and hike, take in the visitor center, learn about the geology, the nature and history of Mount Diablo and have fun! Check out www.mdia.org for a list of upcoming events and hikes.
Jim, thanks so much for bringing us up front and personal with the incredible mountain in our own backyard and your dedication to preserving and sharing it with us all. What a great time of year to enjoy one of the most amazing parks in our State. So, to all of you reading, we hope to see YOU on the mountain, soon!
