Friends of China Camp

Judith Hanks is this year’s China Camp honoree of the “Trash Lady of the Year” award. She could not be more delighted. She accepted the honor, a Modelo can candle, for the tireless hours she’s spent over the years collecting bottles and cans. Recently, she helped remove close to 100 bottles out of poison oak and chaparral in one hour flat.

 Now that’s something to crow about. Judith is a practical, no-frills grandmother who graduated from Stanford, earned a law degree, has a taste for John Updike and Marcel Proust, and spent 35 years working as an attorney. 

At China Camp, she, of course, does far more than picking up trash. For the past seven years she has been a regular on the weekly maintenance crew, chalking up hundreds of hours helping out at the park. On any given volunteer day, she might be found filling in holes on a trail, cleaning out a culvert, or helping to haul rocks for a trail-building project.

If you’ve ever considered volunteering at China Camp, you might want to chat with her. She is a study in confidence and enthusiasm about volunteering at the park, saying simply, “The people here are lovely human beings. They are all very welcoming. Just wonderful, wonderful people. I am very grateful to have found China Camp. I went to several other organizations to volunteer but felt I didn’t belong. I’ve had a feeling of belonging here from the very first day.” 

Stepping in wherever help is needed 

Friends of China Camp board member and volunteer coordinator Joyce Abrams says Judith’s “willingness to help with whatever needs to be done illustrates her flexibility. She is a team player.”

Kevin Smead, who oversees trail maintenance volunteers, adds that he relies heavily on Judith. “She hardly ever misses a workday and is willing to take on whatever tasks need to be done. On multiple occasions she’s come to the park for solo cleanup work.”

Judith is quick to say that she’s had a wonderful, wonderful life, but that she’s been a widow for 12 years and still misses her husband a great deal. It was only recently that she was able to look at a wedding picture and feel happy. 

Her parents were very active volunteers, helping out at Audubon Canyon Ranch and other locations. “It’s just what you did,” Judith observes. And she just keeps on doing, not only by helping out at China Camp but also as a substitute teacher. A stepmother of two and grandmother of three, Judith is a firm believer in the value of public places, parks and libraries in particular. 

“It’s hugely important to see families come to China Camp, to see people with disabilities on the trail, to meet all kinds of visitors,” she says. “Parks are for people.”

—by Janet Wiscombe/FOCC volunteer