2nd Community Meeting, Sunday February 22, 1 PM

You are invited to our 2nd Community Meeting at

1 pm, Sunday, February 22, 2026, at the

Wonder Valley Community Center

80526 ½ Amboy Road, in Wonder Valley.

This meeting will include a SWOT Analysis, in which we will dive more deeply into the issues that concern us. We will be looking at our Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. This engaging and interactive exercise will help us prioritize and strategize.

These community meetings are non-partisan. The Friends of Wonder Valley does not support or oppose any political party, politician, or proposal. The organization, Friends of Wonder Valley, and the Chairperson, remain neutral -- not taking sides for or against any position.

While we are one community, our points of view are diverse. The Chairperson must hold space for those who do not agree with the plurality, or majority.

How do we get things done? We summarize each meeting and send a report to the Third District Supervisor, or to other governing agencies. We ask for them to meet with us. We send letters -- each writer representing their own position, whatever that may be. And we build our reputation and connections with those who can help us have a positive impact on our community.

The role of the Friends of Wonder Valley is to provide a forum where the concerns of the residents can be heard, and conveyed to the appropriate representatives, or agencies.

WV Community Meeting, Sunday, 1/18/2026

This is a photo of a community meeting a long time ago, and we're posting it because we forgot to take pictures at Sunday's meeting.

More than 42 people attended the Wonder Valley Community Meeting, held on Sunday, January 18. It was the first Community Meeting held in 5 years. Teresa Sitz, the Chairman of the FOWV, facilitated the meeting. Ken Sitz spoke on what the community has going for it. Jeffrey Barrett, the FOWV Community Liaison, helped run the Public Comments, and occasionally added perspective. FOWV Director Reeyna Daniel ran the door with Georgene Shelton. Many thanks to Jim Dunham for coming in on his day off to set up. Thanks to everyone who attended and a special thanks to everyone who contributed to offset the costs of the meeting.

The meeting was a little more than an hour, and people broke into groups afterwards and had a good time meeting each other and talking.

A report about the meeting is being sent to the Third District Supervisor’s Office. The report and any reply will be read at the next meeting

The next meeting is scheduled for 1 pm, Sunday, February 22. Please plan to be there. Let's get some things done.

WV Community Meeting Sunday 1/18/2026, 1 pm

There will be a Community Meeting at 1 pm, Sunday, January 18, 2026, at the Wonder Valley Community Center, 80526 ½ Amboy Road, in Wonder Valley.

I’ve lived in Wonder Valley with my husband and son for a little more than 10 years. Shortly after moving to Wonder Valley I was appointed to the MAC, the Municipal Advisory Council and served for three years. The MAC was composed of representatives from the 9 unincorporated communities in the Morongo Basin and met monthly in Joshua Tree. We heard from the Third District Supervisor's Field Rep -- then Mark Lundquist, the Sheriff’s Department, the CHP, County Fire, and other agencies. We asked questions and returned to our communities with answers.

We also gave reports on our communities. These reports were drafted at a monthly community meeting held a week or two before the MAC meeting. We’d meet, and hear what the community wanted. I’d draft a report, and read it to them. They’d offer corrections, and additions, and then endorse the report for me -- the MAC Rep -- to read at the next MAC meeting.

At the monthly Community Meetings the community would first comment on items not on the agenda. Then we’d talk about items they’d added to the agenda at the prior meeting. Toward the end of the meeting they’d add items to the agenda for the next meeting. Below you’ll find an Agenda, and Minutes, from a Community Meeting held on May 6, 2017, as an example.

At the last few Dale Basin Well Owners Association (DBWOA) meetings people made it clear that they wanted public meetings again. The DBWOA was not designed for that purpose.

In 2017, my husband Ken, and I, along with founding members Stewart West, Gary Tufel, and Jill Reinig, formed a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization called the Friends of Wonder Valley. Over the years, and up until 2020, FOWV hosted more than 100 events of all kinds at the WVCC, including Community Meetings.

There hasn’t been a Community Meeting in Wonder Valley since Covid in 2020.

The Friends of Wonder Valley is happy to host the Community Meeting on January 18. Teresa Sitz will serve as facilitator. We anticipate a lengthy comment section. We will be discussing the scheduling of meetings, and proposing items for the next agenda.

Since there is no MAC we will send our Monthly Community Report to Third District Supervisor Dawn Rowe’s office, to the Desert Trail, and to anyone else The Community wants to reach out to.

If we are able to reinstitute Community Meetings we will be 1 of only 2 unincorporated communities out of the 9 in the Morongo Basin, to have constituted their own community meetings. The other community is Landers.

I hope to see you at the meeting. Please feel free to ask questions in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them.

Teresa Sitz

December 2025 Update: Good News!

 It’s been a hard few years for our little board. First there was Covid, which shut down the Wonder Valley Community Center -- our primary venue for events and programming. Then several board members were hit with personal hardships. Our dear friend and board member, Gary Tufel, died in May of 2025. In addition to all of this, renovations were started on the WVCC, making it unavailable to us.

Despite all of this, the Friends of Wonder Valley (FOWV) continued hosting the monthly social meeting Chit Chat & Chew; and we continue to buy supplies for, and support, the USDA Food Distribution.

THE GOOD NEWS IS…
We are thrilled to announce that in our recent end-of-the-year board meeting, we added three new board members: Nick Harmon, Reeyna Daniel, and Kelly Hake, and confirmed Jeffrey Barrett as our Community Outreach Liaison.

This is in addition to board members: Teresa Sitz, Ken Sitz, Isul Kim, and Stewart West.

We are meeting early in January to start planning events and programs, and are excited to begin working together.

Join us by supporting our work! Give through the PayPal Giving Fund. Nonprofits, such as ours, are thoroughly vetted, and no fees are taken from your donation.

https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/CKEQ82D6XQH8L

Dark Skies & Wonder Valley - Fri, April 14, 2023 @ WVCC

Join us to learn how we can protect the Dark Skies in Wonder Valley.

Friday, April 14, 2023 • 7:30pm

Wonder Valley Community Center

80526-1/2 Amboy Road, 92277

Free and open to the public.

Upcoming events at the Wonder Valley Community Center

It's been a busy Spring so far at the Wonder Valley Community Center (WVCC) with many of the events sponsored by the Friends of Wonder Valley (FOWV) or staffed by volunteers working with the FOWV.

Here's a calendar of events at the WVCC through the beginning of Summer. Besides the monthly USDA food distributions we've supported there an Bystanders Overdose Response Training (Narcan training) in February, a Dale Basin Well Owners Association membership meeting in March, and the first of a series of monthly 'Chit-Chat and Chew' Saturday morning community drop-in's scheduled for 2nd Saturdays through June.

New Projects in the Works

SBC Special Districts are currently in the process in applying for special funding for a couple of projects to benefit the Morongo Basin. The first is an upgrade to the Wonder Valley Kitchen and Playground. The second is a Phase II project for the DVCA Recreational Trails. This Presentation briefly outlines the projects. 

Please go to these perspective surveys to provide input on these projects or to express interest in being more involved in the planning process: 

• Wonder Valley Commercial Kitchen and Playground Survey
  bit.ly/wvcckitchen
  The kitchen project is near to our FOWV hearts as we have long hoped to provide salvage food programs and perhaps a test run on a soup kitchen. But we can't do either until the kitchen can be graded and licensed.
• 
  
• Desert View Conservation Area (DVCA). Recreational Trails Phase II Survey
  
  
  

Click here for a .pdf file of photos of the DVCA Recreational Trails Phase I project completed 06/30/2020. 

Thank you for your support!