Tag Archives: West Michigan Environmental Action Council

School News Network: Schoolyard watershed stewardship

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Kole James and Anaiah Dokes find creek critters

By Erin Albanese

School News Network

Oh, the creatures you’ll find in a creek!

Early Childhood Center students shrieked as they discovered the tiny inhabitants of Plaster Creek. “I got something! It’s got legs! It’s got legs!” one squealed as she scooped an insect from a mini-pond created over plastic inside a hula hoop.

Students explored, observed and connected with nature during Water Day, a celebration of Plaster Creek. It was organized by West Michigan Environmental Action Council and with participation from Plaster Creek Stewards with General Motors, Grand Valley State University, Lower Grand River Organization of Watersheds, Kent County Department of Public Works and the Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute.

Samantha Ramirez-Garcia learns about water bugs from WMEAC intern Brooke DeBaar

At themed water stations set up in the school’s Outdoor Learning Lab, students learned about the Plaster Creek Watershed, ecosystems, biodiversity, life cycles, and plastics and other pollutants.

It was all about taking care of their surroundings, said Jessica Vander Ark, director of environmental education for WMEAC. Even the district’s youngest students can be involved in taking care of the creek,  which flows through the ECC school yard.

“We think it’s so important that these students are finding out they have a creek they are partially responsible for. Their families and their actions all affect the watershed. We want to start teaching the whole idea of stewardship early… We want them to care about Plaster Creek and the Grand River Watershed.”

 

Gabriel Quintino examines creek water

Vander Ark takes fourth-graders stream sampling for macro-invertebrates each spring through WMEAC’s program “Teach for the Watershed,” which is run through a partnership with General Motors. Water Day extends teaching about the creek and watershed into earlier grades. “We wanted to find a way to do more and involve more of the students at Godfrey-Lee,” she said.

Preservation and Restoration

Plaster Creek Stewards, a program operated through Calvin College, hosts projects and outreach events to restore the creek, polluted over the years by stormwater runoff that brings contaminants into the creek and excessive sediments.

Program assistant Andrea Lubberts said part of their mission is educating students about how they affect the 58 square-mile watershed and how to reduce water runoff and contamination.

Devin Golden examines what’s in the water

Calvin and Godfrey-Lee Public Schools are both in the Plaster Creek watershed. “We feel very responsible for the health of the watershed because we live here,” Lubberts said. “If students understand that we all live in the watershed and we all affect someone else, we can start taking action.”

Second-grade teacher Lindsay Blume said the day ties in with science standards, including bodies of water and landforms. She said learning about those things right in the school yard is impactful.

“I like when they get outside and learn about the community and see what there is to explore. I hope they get out of it a better understanding of water, and more respect for it.”

Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.

Wyoming Alliance one of five groups to receive a grant from GM Foundation

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Recipients of the GM Foundation grants with GM and UAW Local 167 representatives.

By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

joanne@wktv.org

 

Five local organizations, which provide a range of services from environmental to empowerment of girls, were selected to receive a total of $25,000 from the GM Community Grants program funded by the GM Foundation.

 

“This is not only where our employees come to work each day, it is where our families, friends and neighbors live,” said GM Components Assistant Plant Manager Michael Skilling, who made the announcement during the Metro Cruise opening ceremonies on Saturday. GM Components Holdings LLC is located at 2100 Burlingame Ave. SW.

 

Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll and Wyoming Police Chief James Carmody

The GM Foundation is providing $2 million to more than 180 organizations in 47 communities where GM employees live and work. One of the five local organizations to receive a grant was the Greater Wyoming Community Resource Alliance.

 

“This is the fourth time we have received this from GM and its speaks of their commitment to the community,” said Wyoming Police Chief James Carmody who along with Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll accepted the $5,000 check for the Greater Wyoming Community Resource Alliance.

 

The money will be used to help fund scholarships for youth and families to participate in health, wellness, and recreational activities; public safety initiatives including National Night Out festivities and support and advocating for citizen-driven committees and organizations including Pinery Park Little League, the Community Enrichment Commission and neighborhood associations.

 

“Most of the stuff we do is really interesting in that 100 percent of the donations/contributions that come to the Alliance go back out,” Carmody said. “So there is no administrative costs and that’s a great benefit to the people here, especially to the local community which is our focus.”

 

Poll added that the Alliance has had a number of people from the city step up to volunteer and commit time to make Wyoming a good place to live and work.

 

“They are very good neighbors,” Poll said of the donation from GM Foundation.

 

Accepting for WMEAC was (left) Executive Director Bill Wood and Director Development Mary Robinson

These following groups also each received $5,000 each from the GM Community Grants program:

 

Feeding America – West Michigan Food Bank, which supports four School Mobile Pantries, feeding more than 1,200 families over a four-month period. “At Parkview Elementary, less than a mile from the GM facility, the School Mobile Pantry distributes 7,500 pounds of fresh produce, dairy products, and grains directly to individuals in need,” Skilling said.

 

Finish the Mission Veterans Relief Fund, which has the goal to make West Michigan the most Veteran Friendly community in the nation, will use the money to help local veterans in need and with ongoing capital improvement projects at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans.

 

West Michigan Environmental Action Council will be using the funds to support “Teach for the Watershed” at Godfrey-Lee Elementary School. This program gives all fourth graders the hands-on opportunity to learn about their watershed, storm water contamination and what they can do to prevent pollution. Skilling noted that mentors from GM volunteer to help students make a connection between science and science-based careers. The funds also will support WMEAC’s Annual Mayors’ Grand River Clean Up.

 

YWCA – Grand Rapids provides prevention and empowerment services for women and girls. The grant will be used to provide girls with experiences that develop their awareness and engagement in their community, all while supporting their individual and collective power to become the next generation of leaders.

Five local organizations recipients of GM Foundation grants totaling $25,000

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Members of the various organizations that received grant monies totaling $25,000 braved the rain to participate in this year's 28th Street Metro Cruise.
Members of the various organizations that received grant monies totaling $25,000 braved the rain to participate in this year’s 28th Street Metro Cruise.

For almost a year the Blue Star Moms have been working to raise $40,000 to renovate the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans’ community room, the Cozy Corners.

 

“They have done a fantastic job and received a $30,000 grant from SpartanNash Company [owners of Family Fare, D&W and other grocery stores],” said Tiffany Carr, director of member and community relations for the home. Carr also works with the Finish the Mission Veterans Relief Fund. Along with the Freedom Cruise, the Finish the Mission Veterans Relief Fund focuses on capital improvement projects for the home along with assisting individual veterans.

 

“The Blue Star Moms came to us about the Cozy Corners project and we said, ‘How much do you need?'” Carr said, adding that the $5,000 grant received from the GM Foundation on Saturday during the 28th Street Metro Cruise will help wrap up the fundraising efforts so that renovation on the community room could start in the next 30 days.

 

For the past several years GM has recognized and supported local organizations that help with a number of projects within the community. The GM Community Grants program, funded by the GM Foundation, is providing $2 million to hundreds of organizations in 47 communities where GM employees live and work. Of that amount, $25,000 was awarded to the General Motors Grand Rapids Components Operations in Wyoming to give to local organizations.

 

“We actually start the process by surveying our employees,” said Grand Rapids Components Operations Personal Director Dale Johnson. “We ask them where they are volunteering and what organizations they are participating with.”

 

From there, the list of possible organizations are reviewed with the goal being to select a broad spectrum of groups with various initiatives, health, education, human services, environmental and community development, Johnson said. This Grand Rapids Components Operations awarded $5,000 grants to five organizations: Finish the Mission Veterans Relief Fund, Feeding America, the YWCA, the West Michigan Environmental Action Council and the Greater Wyoming Community Resource Alliance.

 

The Greater Wyoming Community Resource Alliance provides scholarships for Wyoming families to participate in health, wellness and recreational activities. City Manager Curtis Holt said the Alliance has been the recipient of grants from GM in the past and are honored to have again been selected again this year.

 

“It’s a real honor to know that the employees were the ones who help select the groups,” said YWCA Development Community Coordinator Amber Jones. The YWCA plans to use its grant for its Girls Inc. Leadership and Community Action program which is designed to help foster future leaders in the communities where people live.

 

“Our primary services focus on sexual assault and domestic violence,” Jones said. “We have a pressing need for help after something has happened and do not always have the funds for prevention. This money will be specifically set aside for that program.”

 

The West Michigan Environmental Action Council will use its funds for the Teach for the Watershed program at Godfrey Lee Elementary School. This program teaches science in the field and the stream with mentors from GM volunteering to help the students learn about science and to make a connection between science-based careers. The money also will help with the 13th Annual Mayors’ Grand River Clean Up set for Sept. 10.

 

The Feeding America – West Michigan Food Bank will use its grant toward the support of its School Mobile Pantries which has feed more than 1,200 families during a four-month period. At Parkview Elementary, less than a mile from the GM facility, the School Mobile Pantry distributes 7,500 pounds of fresh produce, dairy products, and grains.