SCA hopes you are in good health and spirit. The Covid-19 pandemic has, for the time being, redefined everyday life. Yet even as we practice social distancing, the American people have come together by running errands for the elderly, staging balcony concerts, and leaving fresh baked goods on our neighbor’s doorstep. Humanity, too, has the capacity to go viral.
This other-centeredness has stood at the core of SCA for more than 60 years, through good times and bad. By nature, people are often at their best when conditions reach their worst. And in nature is where SCA volunteers give so much of themselves.
Amid our present challenges, SCA remains resolutely committed to conserving public lands and transforming young lives. Of course, our volunteers’ safety is paramount at all times, as is that of our project leaders and other staff. Accordingly, SCA has paused new programs while canceling other field work to ensure our people’s health and well-being. And although we have also cancelled many planned Earth Day events, we will be holding virtual Earth Day activities.
Like you, we are eager for this crisis to pass. Until then, SCA will rely on our six decades of experience and leadership to adapt to changing circumstances and create new service opportunities, from wilderness settings to urban communities.
We were struck the other day by a social media post from a recent SCA member. “With self-isolation and the inexplicable shortage of toilet paper,” she wrote, “I can’t help to think of how SCA helped me build skills to cope. Like how to spend time alone in quiet contemplation. How to spend time with the same people, all day every day, in tough conditions. And how to use less than a roll of toilet paper in four weeks.”
That is the level of fortitude and resilience SCA instills in our young volunteers, and it is precisely what we need to emerge from this unprecedented situation even stronger than when it began. We thank you for your continued interest and support, and we wish the best for you, your loved ones, and your community in the weeks and months ahead.
