Wendy Dreskin by William Dreskin
As a professional and volunteer, Wendy Dreskin has been exploring and sharing her love of nature with people in Marin County for more than four decades. With the birth of her daughter in the early 1980’s, Wendy quickly discovered that birders are not fond of babies because they make noise and scare the birds. At the same time, Wendy heard about Marin Chapter CNPS Wednesday Wildflower Walks lead by Wilma Follette and joined them with her baby in her backpack . She found that botanists move slowly, so the group had only moved ten yards down the trail in the time it took Wendy to nurse and change the baby. The CNPS group nicknamed Wendy’s daughter Baby Blue Eyes.
Wendy loves introducing adults and children to nature. Since 1998, Wendy has taught her popular adult class “Meandering in Marin” through College of Marin Community Education. Her ongoing column in the Marin Independent Journal also inspires people to get out on Marin’s hiking trails. Wendy especially enjoys introducing people to areas she loves. Wendy has led walks centered on a variety of topics including native wildflowers, tidepools, butterflies, migratory birds, and Native American uses of plants.
While Wendy served as Education Chair for the Marin Chapter of CNPS she started the Junior Botanist program. Free to schools in Marin, the program has reached more than four thousand children over the past two decades. Wendy also collaborated with the Richardson Bay Audubon Center in creating a Junior Bird Watcher Program modeled on the Junior Botanist Program.
Since 2005, Wendy has coordinated the Marin Butterfly Count for the North American Butterfly Association. Other volunteer activities include leading a group for the Point Reyes Christmas Bird Count for Kids, participating in the Mt. Tamalpais Bioblitz, and Point Reyes Rare-Plant-A-Thons. She has been a participant or a group leader for the Marin and Point Reyes Christmas Bird Counts since the early 1970s. 
Wendy Dreskin at Lakes Basin by William Dreskin
Wendy introduced hikers from around the country to Marin’s wonderful hiking trails through Elderhostel (now Road Scholar). She started leading safaris to Tanzania in 2014. The 2017 trip was for Branson School students, and the 2018 trip included an optional volunteer week at a school after the safari which will be repeated in 2022.
For her work inspiring both children and adults, Wendy received the Elizabeth Terwilliger Environmental Award from WildCare and the Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth Teacher Recognition Award. In 2018 she was inducted into the Marin Women’s Hall of Fame
Wendy currently writes her Marin IJ column, teaches two pods of children about nature, leads adult hikes, and gives zoom presentations on nature. Post-COVID she looks forward to resuming Meandering in Marin, after school classes for Bacich Elementary School students, in-school nature classes at Kids on the Hill Preschool, and of course the Junior Botany Program.
Check out all her activities at her website: www.wendydreskin.com
Upcoming Events
- Point Reyes Field Institute: Butterflies for Beginners April 17 and Magic of Minus Tides in May
- Tanzania safari – rescheduled to 2022
- Marin’s annual NABA Butterfly Count June 12
- Sonoma LandPaths walk on May 8
Nature Education for Children
Terwilliger Nature Education Center (now WildCare)
Mark Day School
Odyssey program for gifted students
Kids on the Hill Preschool
Fortune Kids Orphanage and Foundation
Zariki Preschool and Elementary School
Marin County Free Library
Hikes and Programs for Adults
Friends of Olompali State Park
CNPS Marin Chapter
Friends of Corte Madera Creek
Marin Audubon
Environmental Action Committee of West Marin
Point Reyes Seashore Association
Marin Municipal Water District
Marin County Open Space District
Rotary Clubs of San Rafael Harbor and Marin Sunrise