Several groups came together last Tuesday to teach members at Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley’s Yerington site about conservation and the environment. The workshops, made possible by a grant the Smith Valley Conservation District office received, included stations about the water cycle, noxious weeds, bees, groundwater and a visit from Smokey Bear and the Forest Service. University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Yerington Bee Group, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service rounded of the group of presenters.
“The kids seemed to enjoy it a lot,” said District Manager Ed Ryan, who works in the NRCS Yerington office. “They gained a lot of information.” Ryan also said the goal of the conservation districts are to promote locally-led conservation.
Kids at BGCMV rotated between all the stations. They got to meet Smokey Bear and check out a fire truck the Forest Service uses in the field. The other stations included how water is filtered through soil, the water cycle itself, what noxious weeds are and how they can be identified and prevented as well as the importance of bees to plant life.
“My favorite was the water cycle,” said Club member Kevin Hernandez, 11. “We learned how water goes from one spot to the other, around and around.”
The Club offers diverse education programming all throughout the summer to prevent what they call summer brain drain. When Ryan approached Darci Beaton, who coordinates summer programming, she knew the kids would get a lot out of it.
“Learning about our environment is so important,” Beaton said. “It was a real gift getting to learn from people who know so much.”
The summer program at all five of BGCMV’s summer sites is underway, but it’s never to late to join. Parents interested in enrolling their kids in the Club can visit bgcmasonvalley.org for more information.