Incoming and outgoing board members
Janet Byron and Alina Constantinescu

Dear Path Wanderer,

Happy holidays from the Berkeley Path Wanderers Association! We hope the end of the year finds you well, and we wish you a wonderful new year ahead. As this pandemic lingers on, we continue to be especially grateful for the stairs and pathways of Berkeley. Our beloved paths offer a sense of adventure close to home and keep us walking and connected to our community.

Despite its challenges, 2021 was busy as ever for our paths family. Our stellar volunteers built a new path: Hilgard Path (above), a pedestrian connector for Hilgard Avenue on the north side of the UC campus. When our group was formed in 1998, Berkeley had 58 undeveloped path rights-of-way. We have since "daylighted" and transformed 37 of these into wondrous, beautiful trails. Only 21 left to go!

With the community’s generous support, we were able to add handrails to two paths this year: Lower Halkin Walk, a newer path built in 2020, and Poppy Path, an older and well-used path built in 2006. They are both long paths with several steep sections, and we are thrilled to see them made safer by the addition of handrails. Stay tuned as we keep working to bring more handrails to paths.

After a year of virtual walks in 2020, we brought back our in-person guided walks in mid-2021. Since then, volunteers led over a dozen walks including a kids Bingo walk; several parks, history, and architecture tours; a new installment of pooches-in-the-parks walks; a King Tides walk; and sunrise and sunset walks. We enjoy introducing Berkeley’s unique path network to new and seasoned walkers alike and look forward to more adventures together in 2022 and beyond.

Finally, 2021 marked the year when our association’s four founders (Ruth Armstrong, Pat DeVito, Jacque Ensign, and Eleanor Hall Gibson), were recognized by the City of Berkeley via the renaming of four paths in their honor. To mark the occasion, we held a ribbon-cutting celebration (below) at Jacque Ensign Way, with Jacque herself attending and celebrating her 90th birthday. None of our work would have been possible without our founders’ grit and dedication to the paths, and we are honored to walk in their footsteps and realize their vision of revitalizing and caring for the paths. You can see all four renamed paths on the new 9th edition of the Berkeley and Its Pathways map.

On a personal note, 2021 is my fourth and final year serving on the all-volunteer Board of this amazing association. It’s been beyond thrilling to serve for the benefit of our treasured paths. Janet Byron (above left, with Alina), whom many of you know as a terrific walk leader and co-author of Berkeley Walks, is BPWA’s incoming president.

The most enduring takeaway from my experience on the Board is gratitude — to you, our amazing community of path lovers. I still find myself in awe and completely humbled by your support; it is the lifeline that keeps our volunteers going and our paths in good shape for generations of walkers to come. Whether it’s by donating, volunteering on path maintenance days, or cheering us on social media, your support for the paths continues to sustain us. If you value the paths as a local source of inspiration and restoration during these times, I hope you will support our group’s work into the new year and beyond.

Our small but mighty organization is 100% volunteer-run, and your support makes possible new paths, handrails, maintenance, and online resources that benefit our entire community. Your generosity makes a difference for the paths!

It’s easy to donate online, quickly and securely, with a debit or credit card. Just click the button below.

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Or, if you prefer, you may send your tax-deductible donation to:
Berkeley Path Wanderers Association
1442A Walnut Street #269
Berkeley, CA 94709
Please make checks payable to Berkeley Partners for Parks, our fiscal sponsor, and write “Berkeley Path Wanderers Association” or “BPWA” in the memo line.