Pt. Reyes Station--Reconnecting, famous folk singer, russian royalty

What a day for connecting and reconnecting. Yesterday, Victoria, Randell and I drove to Pt. Reyes Station, just a few miles from the national park visitor's center where the Walk for the Earth began. Here, we reconnected with Jerry Lunsford, whom I hadn't seen for about 20 years. Jerry looked good, with long white hair, an energetic personality and a welcome sense of humor. During the 1984 walk, Jerry was an intern with the Mono Lake Committee, helping to fight for the lake's survival (covered in Chapter 9 of the book). My fondest memory of him was when, during the coldest day of walking, just before Mono Lake, he met the walkers with a gallon of hot chocolate in the back of his truck. He walked with our group several hundred miles to the Four Corners area of the Southwest. "I came away from the walk realizing that living by concensus was possible," he said.

Jerry is a strong force for community involvement at Pt. Reyes Station. He helped to establish a community radio station in 1999 and started his own radio program on Monday nights from 6:30-8:30--"The Hippie from Olema." It mostly plays bluegrass music, and he is developing a nationwide following through the Internet. Log in on KMR.org.

Jerry also helped to establish a community center, where he works as a technical director, helping to set up concerts, meetings, weddings and other events, among other duties. The center was built entirely by volunteer involvement and donations in 1989. "Building community is what it is all about for me," he said. His chat room on Monday nights helps him connect to people beyond Pt. Reyes. Jerry is also proud that Pt. Reyes Station is ground zero for organic food production in northern California, and Marin County was the first county to establish their own county organic certification program. Prince Charles visited a few years ago due to his interest in organics.

At a restaurant just before our book program at the local bookstore, Jerry introduced me to a silver-haired musician named Ramblin' Jack Elliott. "What intrument do you play?" I asked.

The man smiled. "Guitar," he said humbly.

"Do you mostly play around here?"

"Oh, I go to the East Coast, Europe and other places," he said quietly.

During his conversation with Jerry, I caught that Ramblin' Jack was playing with Willie Nelson and Emmy Lou Harris in May. Not shabby. Later, Jerry told me that Ramblin' Jack was a famous folk singer, a contemporary of Woodie Guthrie, who helped to inspire Bob Dylan in the 1950s. "Jack's been touring since the 1940s," said Jerry. The laugh was on me. My questions were like asking Bob Dylan what kind of songs he was known for.

Also in the restaurant was a member of the Russian royal family, Andrew Romanoff, the grand nephew of the last Russian czar. He was a painter and an acquaintance of Victoria, and she rushed over to see him. Having been born in England and having never setting foot in communist Russia, he had often conversed with Victoria before and after her 1987 Russian walk (see last blog). He was eventually able to visit Russia as part of an American painters' group, and later when the remains of his murdered ancestors were found and given a proper reburial. Fascinating story, but I didn't have a chance to chat with Andrew as we had to hurry to the bookstore for the program. It was a small but very engaged group and Jerry gave a great introduction to my powerpoint. All in all a very full day.

Today, I flew to Seattle to make my way down to Olympia for a program tomorrow night. During my next blog, I'll feature an interview with former walker John Montrose, who won a horse during a ceremony on the Pine Ridge Lakota Reservation (Chapter 12). Until then, peace.