John A. Willett, Volunteer at Large

Recognized by the San Diego Union-Tribune as the “Guardian of the Otay Valley Regional Park (OVRP)”, John was selected in April 1989 to serve as a charter public member of the newly formed Citizen Advisory Committee (CAC). During his long tenure on the CAC, he served as its Chairperson twice, (1991-1995) and 1997 to the present.

With 47 years combined of U.S. Navy and Civil Service to his credit, in the late 1980s, John began making volunteering a new career. The organizational skills he learned in years of service in aircraft maintenance and engineering are put to good use in John’s role as Volunteer-at-Large in San Diego’s South Bay. John regularly submits review comments and recommendations analyzing technical studies for the Otay Valley Regional Park, the Western Otay Valley Regional Park Natural Resource Management Plan, the OVRP Concept Plan, and the Trails Master Plan. He has made numerous presentations to City of Chula Vista, San Diego County Board of Supervisors and various community groups. Eight years on the City of Chula Vista’s Park and Recreation (1986 -1994) and Planning (1994-2002) Commissions gave John invaluable insight to long-range park planning and supporting infrastructure.

In October 1999, John organized the Otay River Valley Cleanup Project. As of July 2003, over 11,000 labor hours in 55 work periods were expended to remove over 1,000 tons of trash. On October 12, 2002, he co-chaired planting 500 native trees in the Otay River Valley. In January 2003, he coordinated 87 volunteers in the “Creek to Bay Cleanup Program.” John says that there is a lot more still to be done.

John has been honored several times for his work in the community:

· Chula Vista Humanitarian Award, 1999

· Chula Vista Police Department’s Exceptional Community Service Award, 2000

· Chula Vista’s Special Commendation Award for Developing Otay Valley Regional Park, San Diego County Parks’ Volunteer of the Year, the State of California’s third place award “Keep California Beautiful.” and special commendation by the City of San Diego, 2001

· City of Chula Vista’s proclamation of April 17, 2003, as “John Willett Day” and the City of Chula Vista’s “Veteran of the Year” award.

In addition to coordinating work crews to remove trash and debris from the River Valley, John is interested in building a corps of volunteers who will someday act as docents for tours of the area. Tireless in his efforts to do something about the region, John just keeps making this corner of our community better and better.