HUMANITARIAN OF THE YEAR AWARD!

Goes to, my next-door neighbor, Dale Pierce.

A few weeks ago a Mallard hen, duck, decided to build her nest and hatch her brood in the shrubbery next to Dale’s house and front door.

Most of the neighbors on our street were aware of her presence and we all kept an eye out for her comings and goings. Dale, so as not to disturb her, only mowed his lawn while the hen was away from the nest feeding.

Well, finally, Saturday afternoon, they all hatched, ten in all, and the hen was walking them around the neighborhood looking for a path to water. Dale noticed them, and their dilemma, as there is no direct path out of the neighborhood to water. Water is near by but it’s blocked by houses, fences, household pets, playing children, and patrolling Raptors in the sky.

Dale decided that he had to help her get out of the neighborhood, safely, and to the water. He started by herding her forward, out of our cul-d-sac, down a block, around the corner and down another two blocks to an irrigation canal. As luck would have it, the canal was dry! It then took another quarter of a mile down the dry canal to the main canal, water, and safety for mother hen and all her ten ducklings. Dale said that it took him almost two hours for the complete trip.

That’s the story and I think Dale deserves a: Hear Hear, a tip of the hat, a pat on the back, and a, hip hip hooray!