How the Franklin Park Squirrels Got Me a Grant
And saved my sanity during the pandemic
In the late fall of 2019, as an unknown virus began sweeping through Asia, I met a white squirrel.
I was walking on the path between Georgetown and Dupont Circle when I noticed a flash of white in the grass and stopped in amazement. It was an albino squirrel, the first I had seen in many years. I took a picture, posted it on twitter, and kept walking.
When the pandemic hit the US in earnest in March of 2020, everything was closed, and all my art events were canceled. Long daily walks gave me some needed exercise and fresh air, and squirrel-stalking gave me a goal. I gradually ventured to Franklin Park in downtown DC, where I met three more albino squirrels. I named their bold leader Gandalf the White.
Now I know some people consider squirrels a nuisance, but to me they are an endless delight. Chubby, fluffy, and full of personality, they always brighten my day. And seeing a completely white squirrel in an ordinary city park is an unexpected spark of magic, like spotting a unicorn in paddock full of horses. Somehow, in the darkest hours of pandemic, racial unrest, and insurrection, those white squirrels provided a bit of otherworldly beauty.
By May, Squirrel of the Day had become a regular feature of my twitter. I started a squirrel blog. And then, just a month later, the city announced that it was closing Franklin Park for a whole year for a badly-needed renovation. A year! Even worse, the plan for the park included cutting down many large old trees, wiping out the homes and food sources of scores of squirrels.
Distraught, I joined online meetings and email groups about the park renovation, but by then all the plans had been approved. The tree carnage began immediately. I kept going, and still saw the albinos occasionally. After the trees came down, a fence went up around the park, but I persevered. They covered the fence with a vinyl wrap, but I could still see the squirrels if they were up in the branches of the remaining trees. I caught my last glimpse of a Franklin Park white squirrel sometime in the cold winter of early 2021. By the time the park reopened in September 2021, all the albino squirrels had disappeared.
The newly renovated park had a lovely new fountain, attractive seating, clean bathrooms, and very few trees. The squirrel population was a fraction of its 2020 levels. I kept bringing peanuts, and slowly, gradually, the Franklin Park squirrels bounced back. One of them, Fluffy Gray, even ran for mayor of DC in 2022. I haven’t seen any albinos yet, but I live in hope.
I get newsletters about the park from the Downtown DC BID (Business Improvement District) via the email lists I had joined to follow the progress of the renovation. By 2022, they were full of events happening at the park – concerts, art exhibitions, even COVID vaccination clinics. And one day, I saw an announcement for grants for DC-based small businesses. I applied, and I got a grant for my art business!
At the award reception, I ran into an old friend who owns a restaurant downtown, and we started chatting about the grant program. She had seen it in the Downtown BID newsletter.
“I saw it there too!” I said. “I get the BID newsletter-”
“Because you show your art downtown, right?” she cut in. I just laughed.
“Nope. Not for years! I owe this one to the Franklin Park squirrels.”
Final Art Event of 2023
Looking for some microbiology or neuroscience-inspired holiday gifts?
I’ll be at the Dupont Circle Holiday Pop-Up on December 2 from 12-5
If you can’t make it IRL, fear not! My Etsy shop is always open for your Science Art needs and I will be shipping until the very last minute.
I’m a big squirrel fan too! We have occasional all black colored squirrels here (California) but I have never seen an albino one! You are lucky indeed. I hope you see them again soon. Wonderful post.