Going Green:

St. James residents make a difference

*Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program, Audubon International Audubon specialists at St. James are responsible for making sure the four golf courses have met the standards of Audubon International to be a Cooperative Sanctuary. The award-winning ACSP involves environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, reduction of chemical use, water conservation and quality management, as well as outreach and education. *St. James P.R.I.D.E. This group helps Brunswick County maintain its natural beauty of rural farmland, forests and wetlands by organizing trash pickups along two miles of local Highway 211 four times each year. Steve Cherry heads up the group and is also the vice-chairman of Keep Brunswick County Beautiful in his spare time. *Birds of St. James Margie Foote and other committee members educate residents about the birding community of Southeastern North Carolina. "I've always been a birder,? she said. "When I lived in Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Virginia. But this is such a unique area here for flora and fauna. In addition to our year-round birds, we are also part of a flyway for migratory birds.? *St. James POA Landscaping Committee The members of the Property Owners Association's landscaping committee are responsible for a number of beautification projects in the community. One is the Buy-a-Bench program that purchases park benches for common areas throughout the neighborhood. "We do a lot for aesthetic improvements,? said Chuck Akstin, who was on hand for Earth Day. "I think this event is helping get the word out to a lot of folks.? 31 www.stjamesplantation.com

Opportunities abound for residents who want to volunteer with the environment in mind. Here's a brief look at some of the local people and groups dedicated to giving back to Mother Nature.

*Firewise Reducing the risk of forest fires is the goal of Firewise. "There are a lot of small things people can do that add up to so much when it comes to fire prevention,? said Dev Keenan, chairman of the local Firewise group. Simply cleaning out the brush is a good place to start - and a good way to protect the people, property and natural resources of the area. *N.C. Coastal Federation North Carolina has 320 miles of beaches and 4,200 miles of shoreline around coastal sounds, rivers and creeks. Protecting those areas from environmental damage has been the goal of the Coastal Federation since 1982. "It tackles issues that citizens bring to us,? said J. Taylor Ryan, St. James project leader. "From cleaning the coast, to storm water concerns and oyster shell recycling. There's a lot going on in the area.? "For oysters, we take their habitat away when we eat them,? he said. "And they are an important part of the ecosystem here. We have so many volunteers from the St. James area. We recently had 80 volunteers bag oyster shells to create a new habitat. It was unbelievable. It shows a lot of volunteer spirit.? *Master Gardeners "Everybody wants to know what grows well here,? said Bev Mastrovich, of the local Master Gardeners. She and Cathie Rod spent time telling new residents what they can grow, what they can do to make their gardens less attractive to deer, and letting them know about the local cooperative extension service, which is a good resource for local garden questions. For more information on these groups, go to GoGreenStJames.com

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1 2 a message 18 22 42 44 46 54 70 60 32 38 downtown wilmington 7 8 downtown wilmington's art and culture, get involved at the cameron art museum 11 12 the downtown art scene includes unique performance opportunities 14 a home like no other family is the heart of the home at st. james plantation.a sense of place the st. james chapel 19 new woodlands park homesites planned for october release 21 22 23 golf 's best-kept secret -ireland in other words, links golf is nothing like american golf. nothing. that's why anyone who calls him or herself a golfer needs to take a week or so and travel to experience the differences.27 the charm of orton plantation 29 'going green' becomes a neighborhood affair 32 going green: anall-volunte erfire department 36 it could be said that a community gets the fire department it deserves. and thanks to community-wide support, the st. james fire department has evolved into one of the best firehouses in the area.38 39 splish-splashing is fun and exercise for this group of ladies.41 42 harborwalk a new 45 st. james university 47 plantation some of the first neighbors ann o'malley met in st. james plantation were flowers. drives around the community introduced her to various gardens she wished to know better. today, o'malley is roaming those yards, and she's brought a few hundred people along. "you can drive by all of these houses and see how beautiful they are in the front, but there are things in the back,? o'malley says, joining several folks nosing about powder blue hydrangeas, sunny yellow lantanas, and soft pink mimosas decorating pattie accordino's lush rear lawn.50 51 52 53 1 4 55 56 fun + learning = owner spotlight: 59 he said, she said 61 st. james properties, llc resale division 3891 ridge crest drive the reserve collection 3310 sparkleberry court the nature view collection 3565 st. james drive the links collection 4135 south lagoon court the links collection 3030 marshwinds circle, villa 1104 the plantation villa collection 3776 ridge crest drive the reserve collection 3840 worthington place the reserve collection 3350 club villa, villa 305 the plantation villa collection 4152 skeffington court the nature view collection hole by hole hole #11 hole #12 75 76