Special Kudos to the Patrick Henry Elementary School Earth Force Team!!!

Congrats to the Mrs. Kathy Campbell and her advance 5th grade class! They are the first team to go through the Earth Force program and develop a project in the Martinsville- Henry County area!! They used the Earth Force curriculum and the scientific method to identify environmental concerns within their school and they identified quite a few however the students felt that the best way to address the issues were to educate the students in their school about these concerns. Therefore, they came up with the idea of developing board games that educate the players about the environment. The students split up into small groups and created their own games. They have been documenting this process with pictures and discussions. The environmental concerns that they feel deeply about will be presented in a Power Point to.

Partner updates

The Martinsville Leisure Services has changed their name to Martinsville Parks and Recreation.

Friedns of Philpot is currently working on the handicapped accessible park

ACE at Philpot Dam is curretnly constructing fitness interpretative trails

SEMAA is looking to improve race traffic during race weekend

Martinsville City schools is working on implementing a STEM class at the highschool that uses Earth Force and implementing agriculture in the classroom at the elementary and middle schools. They will be using earth force to train the teachers and for implementation of the class. Great job Martinsville City Schools.

Earth Week April 17-24, 2010!

Keep your ears and eyes open, we are currently in the process of designing another Earth Week!! Earth Week will be April 17-24, 2010!!

Frank Wilson Park Update

Wilson Park has officially opened its nature trail!!! The next time you visit the park take a trip on the new trail! It is located near the stone shelter behind the handicapped parking sign.

By popular demand, the park will be adding another 9 holes to its disc golf course!!!

New Additions to the M-HC Parterships

We would like to give a warm welcome to two new additions to the M-HC Steering Committee which are the Smith River Sports Complex and the Henry County Martinsville Virginia Cooperative Extension. They will be a great asset to the committee.

Outdoor Fun Festival!!

Festival in the Park!!! The Outdoor Fun Festival had over 300 people in attendance and organizations as far north as Roanoke and as far south as NC participated. This was CNI's first festival and it went very well. Kids had a blast climbing the large rock wall, doing flips on the moon bounce, sliding on the inflatable slide, trying their skills on the disc golf display, and enjoying free play in the dirt pit with worms and the sand pit!! Pictures will be placed in the CNI facebook group and on this webpage soon! :)

Outdoor Fun Festival

Come out and join the CNI and its partnering organizations for an Outdoor Fun Festival in Frank Wilson Park! We will have horses, face painting, moon bounces, slides, and many organizations from around the Martinsville-Henry County Area. The event will be in Frank Wilson Park, October 10 from 10:00am to 5pm!

Take A Child Outside Week

Take A Child Outside (TACO) week is a national week that focuses on breaking down the barriers that prevent children from going outside. From September 24-30 organizations around the United States who are participating will be providing their local area outdoor programs for their community. CNI will be offering the following programs
August 25: Screen on the Green at 7:00pm at Frank Wilson Park
August 26: National Public Lands Day, Wilson Park Clean up from 10-noon
August 26: Geocaching in Frank Wilson Park
August 26: Special Saturdays program from 10-noon in Frank Wilson Park

Next Screen on the Green

Our next Screen on the Green will be this Friday September 25, 2009 at 7:00pm! Activities will start at 7:00pm and the movie will begin at 8:00pm. This event is part of the national Take A Child Outside week. See the above to read more about what will be taking place for TACO week.

Grassroots Gathering

CNI attended the Grassroots Conference at Keystone Colorado September 9 through the 11. It was a wonderful conference. Beautiful area and wonder people. There are many organizations around the United States that are active in getting children outdoors. It was very reassuring that we had so much support and that all the organizations support one another in the movement. CNI made a lot of connections with other organizations during this conference so be on the look out for unique and more diverse events and activities coming soon.

Screen on the Green!

August 28 CNI partnered with Martinsville Leisure Services to present a Screen on the Green.
Activities started at 7:00pm and the movie began at 8:00pm. We had about 20 people in attendance on this rainy Friday night! Movie Town donated about five pounds of popcorn! We also had animal crackers, drinks, face painting, bubble making, leaf rubbings, leaf identification, insect discovery and identification at this event as well. We watched the movie, “Bears,” from the National Wildlife Federation to support National Parks Awareness month. What a way to spend a Friday night!

Wild About Early Learners Traning

CNI worked with DGIF to arrange a training for educators in the Project Wild curriculum "Wild About Early Learners." This curriculum provides outdoor activities for children ages pre-k to third grade to participate in. During this training we had a great representation from VMNH and USACE at Philpott Dam. It was very informative and provided us with great resources and tools that will enable us to use their “Wild About Early Learners” curriculum.

Tree Inventory

CNI conducted a tree inventory training July 28 and August 13 for interested participants. The tree inventory is going well. We can't wait to get the children out there identifying trees. Spread the word to people who you feel would be interested in participating in the tree inventory our next ones are September 18 and October 23 at 4:00pm. We meet at J. Frank Wilson Park in the log shelter. For more information or to see the blogged trees go to http://wilsonparktreesurvey.blogspot.com/

Earth Force Update

The following are brief definitions of each group to prevent confusion

Earth Force Group consists of the educators who were trained in the Earth Force Curriculum. They act as facilitators of each Earth Force team because Earth Force projects are solely student run. The facilitators supervise the students and guide them through each part of the curriculum.

Earth Force Team consists of the students who are taking part in the Earth Force program. They are using the scientific method to identify issues in their community and proceed to address them. Go to www.earthforce.org if you would like to learn more about the curriculum and see success stories.

The first Earth Force Team in the Martinsville-Henry county area is based out of the Virginia Museum of Natural History and supervised by Evalyn Chapman and myself. We placed an announcement of the formation of an Earth Force team in the newspaper and we received five responses. Coincidentally, all five students come from the same high school in Henry County. We have met with them three times and they are currently observing the area of Bassett to find an issue they are passionate about and that they would like to address. We will keep you posted.

The Earth Force Group has met twice and are currently forming their own partnerships within the group in order to develop their own Earth Force Team. They will be using the VMNH Earth Force team as a model. For updates on this group you can go to http://mhcearthforce.blogspot.com/ and see what they are up to.

August National Parks Awarness

To help support our National Parks, CNI has recognized the parks in the Martinsville- Henry County area. We interviewed two US Army Corps of Engineers, Danny and Susan Martin and the President of Friends of Philpot Linda Drage at Philpott Lake. Our goal was to spread awareness about Philpott Lake and the wonderful programs that they have.

CNI Monthly Themes

To raise awareness about nature and the outdoors, we are planning awareness months. We will promote environmental literacy in the community by providing nature and outdoor information, tips, and online video clips. August is National Parks Month!

Screen on the Green!

M-HC CNI will be conducting a "Screen on the Green" once a month during the last Friday from April through September. "Screen on the Green" will feature a nature or environmentally educational box-office movie at an outdoor venue in the community. Come out and enjoy popcorn, drinks, games, and a movie for free!

Upcoming dates for Screen on the Green:
August 28, 2009
September 25, 2009

Earth Force

The Martinsville- Henry County Earth Force is a team of educators who are trained to help our community identify potential environmental issues and address them appropriately. This team will help educate and encourage children in our community to take action in being good stewards of our environment. For more information go to http://mhcearthforce.blogspot.com/

Tree Inventory

As part of the Wilson Park Tree Inventory, CNI will be conducting tree inventory trainings for interested memebers of the community please see the following link for more information http://www.wilsonparktreesurvey.blogspot.com/

National Get Outdoors Day

We will be participating in the National Get Outdoors day (http://www.nationalgetoutdoorsday.org/) by interpreting a number of hikes at Salthouse Branch. We will meet at the Philpott Dam overlook at 1:00 and carpool to Salthouse Branch. The hikes will begin at 1:30 and last an hour.

Earth Force Training

June 10, 2009 we hosted an Earth Force training for 16 very eager community educators. We are currently coordinating new ways for us to communicate to enable us to organize Earth Force projects in the community. More information to come soon.

NAME CHANGE!

Hello Everyone!

As we approched year two of this program our focus has to broaden to not only be a network of nature and outdoor outdoor organizations but to also provide more nature and outdoor programming for the community. In doing so we have changed our name from MHC Children and Nature Network to the Martinsvilel Henry County Community Nature Initiative!

Collins Family Wins Grand Prize!

The Collins Family is the first family to win the Earth Week Grand Prize!! They had their choice of participating in a guided educational canoe trip down the Smith River by DRBA or receive two tickets to the Gemini Fest that is June 19. Mr. and Mrs Collins decided to treat themselves to a date to the Gemini Fest.

Quote from Tim Collins: " You guys made the Collins family's week! My family and i loved all the activities you provided, there was such a range of different activities to choose from, my kids wanted to go to all of them!"

CONGRATULATIONS COLLINS FAMILY AND THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING!!!!!

Earth Week Highlights!

Hello Everyone!


The first annual Earth Week went very well! We had 27 activities in 9 days and over a dozen organizations participating!!! Thank you to everyone who worked hard to make this a successful event!!

Here are a few highlights from the week

Community Pride, Community Wide Litter Pick-up: The Frank Wilson Park location was cancelled due to the lack of participation however the other four sites did very well accumulating dozens of bags of trash from throughout the community! Great Job Guys!!

Earth Day 5 K: Hosted over 90 participants! T-shirts, food, and drinks were provided to participants. What a great time! Good Work!

Friends of Philpott Environmental Expo: Over 400 people attended this event and dozens of vendors were advertising their organizations from throughout the area. What a great time and such great exposure for us!

VMNH Earth Day Event: VMNH provided environmental programs for school groups for Earth Week. Over 300 students participated in this event!

Screen on the Green: At this event we had kids playing recycling games, getting their faces painted, playing on playground equipment, playing with bubbles before showing the movie, "Over the Hedge." We had over 50 people attend this event.

Earth Week Celebration

On behalf of fifteen community organizations, the Martinsville-Henry County Children & Nature Network (MHCC&NN) is pleased to announce the premier of Earth Week, April 18 to April 26 2009.

The purpose of Earth Week is to bring the community together to celebrate the environment. During the week, participants will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational and fun-filled activities. You won’t want to miss Screen on the Green, Earth Day 5 K, Earth Day at VMNH, and the Photo Scavenger Hunt. Go to: http://www.mhccnn.org/ for a complete listing of all the week’s fun events!

Download an Earth Week Passport from http://www.vmnh.net/news.cfm?ID=151 or pick one up from participating organizations in the community to be able to enter to win guided family canoe trip on the Smith River (immediate family only).

If you have any questions contact Tamara Poles at tamara.poles@vmnh.virginia.gov or go to http://www.mhccnn.blogspot.com/

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plants American Chestnut Tree at Philpott Lake

In an effort to support the restoration of the American Chestnut tree, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hosted a ceremonial tree planting of the American Chestnut tree yesterday at Philpott Lake Overlook. This beautiful ceremony was not only educational but empowering as well. It showed that we not only recognize the benefits of the American Chestnut tree but we are not giving up on saving it from extinction. Danny Martin opened the ceremony with a great introduction their purpose then speakers like Daniel Brown from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), W. Roscoe Reynolds Virginia State Senator, Susan Martin (ACE), Cathy Mayes who is the President of the American Chestnut Foundation Virginia Chapter, and Bryan Burhans who is the President of the American Chestnut Foundation.

About the American Chestnut Tree and the blight

The American chestnut tree was an essential component of the entire eastern US ecosystem. A late-flowering, reliable, and productive tree, unaffected by seasonal frosts, it was the single most important food source for a wide variety of wildlife from bears to birds. Rural communities depended upon the annual nut harvest as a cash crop to feed livestock. The chestnut lumber industry was a major sector of rural economies. Chestnut wood is straight-grained and easily worked, lightweight and highly rot-resistant, making it ideal for fence posts, railroad ties, barn beams and home construction, as well as for fine furniture and musical instruments.
The blight, imported to the US on Asian chestnut trees, is a fungus dispersed via spores in the air, raindrops or animals. It is a wound pathogen, entering through a fresh injury in the tree's bark. It spreads into the bark and underlying vascular cambium and wood, killing these tissues as it advances. The flow of nutrients is eventually choked off to and from sections of the tree above the infection, killing them. www.acf.org

Networking Update from the Corps of Engineers

Join the Corps of Engineers and local volunteers this Saturday, February 7, at Jamison Mill Park at 9 am for some trail building. Work days are typically scheduled for the first Saturday of every month. This time we will have two SK 500 mini-skid steer trail building machines on hand to continue where we left off a month ago. Volunteers will begin working at 9 am and conclude around 1pm or so.

Also, Henry County Bike Club President Tommy Smith will lead a road bike ride at 2 PM starting at Jamison Mill Park after we are finished working. Remember to bring your lunch along with snacks and water. Some snacks and drinks will be provided by the Friends of Philpott. We will be doing a significant amount of corridor clearing so leaf blowers are very much appreciated. Dress appropriately, with sturdy leather shoes and gloves. Hard hat and eye protection recommended. Contact Mary Lawson at (276) 629-4512 ext. 227 if you're interested in volunteering.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The New Year is underway bringing in new programs, new events, and a new name for the MHC C&NN! We had our first meeting of the New Year January 6th and it went very well. It was a very productive meeting because we have a lot of very eager and energetic committee members who are ready and gearing up to do some very notable programs! Here are some key points of what we covered during the meeting

NAME ALERT!!! The MHC C&NN contacted the national Children and Nature Network to notify them about our current progress. They were delighted to hear about our progress and what we are doing with the community. They were elated that they had inspired this area to take action. However, because the “Children and Nature Network,” is the national organization we are unable to use this name. Therefore our committee members are currently brainstorming potential names for this organization. Will it be the Martinsville Henry County Outdoor Community Network? We will let you know when we decide.

Earth Week! Since Earth Day falls on a Wednesday this year and we would like families and other members of the community to participate in Earth Day, the MHC C&NN will be conducting an entire week devoted to the environment! This week, cleverly titled "Earth Week," will start April 22 and last until April 29. Each day there will be environmental events and programs taking place around the Martinsville Henry County area. So far we have an art contest, hikes, and numerous environmental programs in progress. Keep checking this blog to find out more details about this huge event.

The Network

At our meeting which is mentioned above, we discussed some upcoming events that other organizations are conducting. The following are some events and activities that are going on in your area,

New College Institute: They are having a Lecture Series entitled Healthy Hearts on February 12, 2009 at noon

Philpott: March 18, 2009 at 11:00am there will be a ceremonial tree planting of a blight resistant American Chestnut tree at Philpott Lake Visitor Assistance Center in Bassett, Virginia.

Henry County Schools: Good luck to the students of HC because they started their SOL testing January 7. Also I would like to extend congratulations to them for receiving a grant to do stream testing. Great Job!

Master Naturalist: I would like to congratulate the 23 people who graduated recently from the Southwestern Piedmont Chapter Master Naturalist program! They are currently looking for volunteer opportunities to complete their program requirements. Keep up the good work guys!

Patrick Henry Community College: I would like to congratulate them as well for their numerous achievements. They have received a grant for their agriculture department and they are one of the two community colleges that saw an increase in student enrolment this year! Great Job!

Dan River Basin Association: Started their Tuesday Morning Strolls, the next one is February 3rd at 9:00am. They are also conducting an art contest entitled “Picture Yourself on the River,” this will take place during Earth Week. The art is due April 22 and the winner will be announced April 29.

Virginia Museum of Natural History: Recently had a festival entitled Dino Day that went very well. Great Job! They also are looking for ideas or suggestions for their Special Saturday programs. If you have any ideas or suggestions on what VMNH should have for programs during Special Saturdays please email Tamara Poles.