For three days at the end of April, sixth and seventh grade students from Warren County Middle School arrived at the park to experiencea fun and educational event entitled, "TheMeaningful Watershed Experience." The program, which was developed byour park manager, Tony Widmer and his wife Cathy, has been an annual park event for many years. Thegoal of the program has been to affordstudents the opportunity to get outside and participate in activities which foster a sense of respect for the diverse ecosystems that existin the Shenandoah Valley.
This year's event was a big success.Students rotated through four different stations, operated by members oflocalorganizations, who generouslydonatedtheir time and talentsoffer this educational experience.Janet Tinkham and Tom Tucker ofDepartment of Forestry, discussed fire safety and did a smallprescribed burn demonstration. In addition,studentsin an advanced placement environmentalscience atSkyline High School operateda macroinvertebrate and water testing station.
The teachers and students allhad awonderful time and enjoyed learning many new things.The kids even got to witness two black rat snakes crawling up a tree! Plans arealready in the worksfor next year's event.The staff at Shenandoah River State Park wouldlike to extend itsappreciation and thanks to all the volunteerswho helped tomake this event possible.
