Making fish prints with HRWC at the GREEN TENT.

Last weekend I spent three days under the GREEN TENT in beautiful Riverside Park talking with the people of Ypsilanti about the Huron River.  HRWC sponsored an exhibit and thanks to several wonderful volunteers we demonstrated stream monitoring or “bug catching” as it is fondly called by the younger crowd; we hosted an art activity for kids making prints of Huron River fish using an old Japanese technique that fisherman used for recording their catch; and we raffled off a brand new three person canoe generously donated by REI Ann Arbor to help raise money for our work.

I am happy to report that the winner of the CANOE RAFFLE, Marc Davignon, is a young man from Ypsilanti who is a passionate canoer and thrilled that he now has his own canoe with which to navigate the Huron.  I was able to reach him at home within minutes of the drawing and his parents helped transport the canoe right from the Festival.

I am equally happy to report the enthusiasm and interest I heard and saw  from the people at the Festival about the Huron River.  So many of you shared your favorite places to canoe, asked questions about the stretch of river in the park, expressed an interest in joining us for River RoundUp in October, helped your kids make fish prints, and asked if we planned to come back again next summer with another canoe to raffle.

Thanks also to the GREEN TENT sponsors, Eastern Michigan University and the City of Ypsilanti, that work hard each year to draw interesting exhibitors from Southeastern Michigan who can share information on how to protect the environment, conserve energy, and provide healthy locally grown foods.  This year they made a special effort to bring the birds of prey from the Leslie Science & Nature Center to the tent.  Let me just say that in spite of the rainy weather on Saturday, the bald eagle stole the show!

Mark your calendars for next year’s Ypsilanti Heritage Festival, most likely the third weekend in August, and be sure to join us.  You don’t want to miss the fun!