Meet Our Community: Ronald Horii
- Paige Combs - KCCB
- 23 hours ago
- 4 min read
As part of our seasonal spotlight series, we’re celebrating our incredible employees, partners, and volunteers who help make the work of Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful (KCCB) possible. In our Earth Day Blog, we talk about the ‘Ripple Effect’ and how all it takes is one person to inspire many to make a change in their community. Today, we’re excited to introduce Ron, a long-time volunteer dedicated to learning and slowing down. You’ll find him taking photos, attending and leading BioBlitzes, and engaging in our community around Coyote Creek.
Role: Volunteer and BioBlitz Docent
With KCCB: Over 9 Years!
Fun Facts 🌟
Happy place: Santa Teresa County Park 🏞️
Unusual creek sightings: Bald Eagle 🦅
Favorite hobbies: Photography, Fishing 📸 🐟
Favorite place to eat: Senro Sushi on Cottle Road 😋
Favorite color: Blue and Green 🌈
When Ron was asked about something unusual he saw around the creek, he said, “I was riding my bike on Coyote Creek Trail, and I saw this bird in the tree. And I thought, " That’s a weird-looking bird." The closer I got, the more I saw its white head. That’s a bald eagle. And the moon happened to be out at that time. So I got into just the right position where I got the moon and bald eagle in the same shot. So that actually won a prize.”
How it All Started 🌱
Ron grew up in Los Angeles, and his family moved to Santa Barbara, California, when he was in high school. He went to UC Santa Barbara to get his Bachelor's in Biology, got a master’s in Scientific Instrumentation, and graduated in 1977. He was offered work up in San Jose, California, and the rest is history.
It was around 2017 that Ron started getting outside more and discovered Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful. There was a tour of Coyote Creek, and the next year they had a BioBlitz there, and he has been going to as many BioBlitzes as he can.
Impact on the Community 🌎
Something that Ron discovered is that a major part of what gets him out into these events and this community is the opportunity to learn, to discover hidden nature, and to slow down and enjoy what’s around him. This is especially true for children. Ron mentioned that the BioBlitz is a good way to get people to come out and appreciate nature and learn about it. They are outside and contributing to science.
He said, “You know, in a BioBlitz, you stop, and you look at everything. You look carefully and then all of a sudden you discover that there’s nature hiding in the bushes and the trees…it’s discovering hidden nature and learning to slow down, stop, and take it all in.”
He also described that BioBlitzes have a range of experts with a variety of experiences, and someone could learn a lot simply by spending time with this community.
“The neat thing about the BioBlitz is you get different specialities, you get bird experts, insect experts, plant experts…you’re collectively sharing different interests and knowledge. I learn a lot just by hanging around those guys.”
Beyond the impact it has on the younger generation, Ron noticed that it’s important to the surrounding community and getting more people aware of the creek and its importance. In 2017, he mentioned the flooding really impacted the surrounding area, but because of it, more and more people are getting involved with Coyote Creek.
Looking Ahead: The Future of KCCB ☀️🌳
When thinking about the future of KCCB, Ron said that it’ll be essential to continue their mission and see where the work with Coyote Valley goes. Ron believes that this, alongside some introductory events, will help people learn about Coyote Valley and raise awareness of the creek as a resource.
Something important that resonates with the goals of KCCB is that we keep Coyote Creek beautiful and clean. As we meet our goals, that opens up doors to work on other things, like building more urban open space and opening the outdoors to more people who could benefit from it.
“There are two sides to KCCB, there’s a cleanup side, and there's a nature side. So I’m more in the nature side…and I just see more of that…The Open Space Authority has this big mission now, and they preserved lots of Coyote Valley, so now they’re trying to figure out what to do with it,” Ron expressed.
Final Thoughts ✨
Ron believes that if someone expresses interest in volunteering, it doesn’t hurt to come to an event and look at everything that is being offered to see if they are interested in doing it. If you are finding trouble in being motivated, sometimes what is useful is a gentle push from a doctor, finding a connection to your early childhood and experiences, or it could even be a new hobby that becomes a cyclical web that feeds your soul and gets you outside.
“I was having trouble going upstairs to my building, and my doctor said to get more exercise…I said, I can go out to my local park and just go walking around…so I did that…and then while I was doing that, I took pictures and shared my experiences and things like that…Even as a little kid, I liked taking pictures. I learned to appreciate nature,” Ron reflected.
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