Monday, April 8, 2019

Union Volunteers, Partners to Construct Wheelchair-Accessible Boardwalk for Suncoast Youth Conservation Center

What:
The nonprofit Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA) is teaming up with a
wide range of partners to give thousands of Florida youth and their
families better firsthand access to the Gulf of Mexico’s inshore
ecosystem by constructing a wheelchair-accessible boardwalk and
fishing pier at the Suncoast Youth Conservation Center (SYCC) in
Apollo Beach.

These partners are holding a volunteer workday at the project site on
Saturday, April 13, providing the media ample opportunities for
construction photos and interviews with organizers and volunteers.

Who:
The wheelchair-accessible boardwalk and fishing pier project is being
organized as part of Work Boots on the Ground – the USA’s flagship
conservation program. Project partners include the USA, Fish and
Wildlife Foundation of Florida, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission, Southern States Millwright Council, The Saunders
Foundation, Frank E. Duckwall Foundation, Ben Hur Construction, Pure
Fishing and a number of local labor unions. Collectively, donations in
funds, volunteer union labor, materials and other construction
expenses from these partners are expected to top $800,000.

Why:
Part of the FWC’s Florida Youth Conservation Centers Network (FYCCN),
the SYCC is a marine-focused conservation education center on the
eastern shore of Tampa Bay. The campus, which includes a
6,000-square-foot education facility with an outdoor classroom, hiking
and kayak trails, a wildlife observation tower, and a Sea Turtle
Rehabilitation Center, was developed in partnership with TECO Energy
and the Florida Aquarium. More than 11,000 youth and adults
participate in SYCC programs annually.

The new boardwalk and fishing pier will flank a 2.5-acre saltwater
pond and marsh adjacent to the educational complex. By design, the new
structure will allow visitors to study coastal marine habitats and
learn to fish with minimal impact to the environment.

When:
Saturday, April 13, 2019
8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Where:
Suncoast Youth Conservation Center
6650 Dickman Rd.
Apollo Beach, Florida 33572

Photo Opps:
Local labor union members and other volunteers building the boardwalk and pier.

Contacts:
Pre-event media contact: Dan Johnson, USA Public Relations Manager,
(763)-244-5019; danj@unionsportsmen.org
On-site media contact: Forrest Parker, USA Director of Conservation
and Community Outreach, 828-788-1153




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Union Sportsmen’s Alliance: The USA is a union-dedicated, 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization whose members hunt, fish, shoot and volunteer
their skills for conservation. The USA is uniting the union community
through conservation to preserve North America’s outdoor heritage. For
more information, visit www.unionsportsmen.org or connect on Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram.

Work Boots on the Ground: WBG is the USA’s flagship conservation
program that brings together union members willing to volunteer their
time and expertise to conservation projects that improve and enhance
public access to the outdoors, conserve wildlife habitats, restore
America’s parks and mentor youth in the outdoors. WBG works closely
with federal, state and local agencies and other conservation groups
to provide manpower needed to complete critical projects that may
otherwise go undone.

Dan Johnson | Public Relations Manager
763-244-5019 | danj@unionsportsmen.org