Letters: State parks matter

Re “Park closures don’t add up,” Column, May 28

A couple of weeks ago, I led an interpretive walk in one of our state parks for a class of at-risk children. For many of them, this was their first trip to see the ocean. For all of them, it was their first walk in the backcountry, the place where nature still rules.

It was a rewarding day for me and a worthwhile experience for them. Their eyes were as wide as saucers and their questions never stopped. Yet this is the type of experience that will disappear in California if Gov. Jerry Brown’s penny wise and pound foolish park closure plan goes into effect.

When tallying the economic cost of closing parks, be sure to include the cost to society of young people who don’t know the value of their natural heritage.

Len Gardner

Laguna Woods

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