Check out what the conservation district has accomplished during Wednesday's annual meeting
CENTREVILLE – A closer look at the critical relationship between trees, plants and bees will be the focus of St. Joseph County Conservation District’s annual meeting.
The two-hour event starts at 6 p.m. Wednesday at St. Joseph County Intermediate School District.
Agency director Carolyn Grace said Mike Connor, a certified arborist and beekeeper for more than two decades, is the featured speaker.
“Mike’s presentation is called ‘Meadows in the Sky,’” Grace said. “It looks at all the flowering trees in our area and how they provide nectar for all the bees, the bats and the birds to help pollinate. It’s really interesting because it takes a close look at the critical habitat for pollinators.”
The meeting will also feature the annual “Conservationist of the Year” award winner. Grace said two people will be recognized as 2024 recipients. The first is Ryan Clark.
Grace said Clark is new to the business, and grows corn and soybeans on just a few hundred acres in Leonidas and Colon townships.
“He’s working with the Natural Resource Conservation Services to get into the programs for young farmers, network with some of the young and new farmers,” Grace said. “He’s in his 20s, a young guy and just starting out. We’re really excited for him.”
The other recipient is Richard Livermore. Grace said Livermore is the agency’s volunteer of the year.
“He’s been helping us with the macroinvertebrates/invasive species monitoring, and he is taking on the entire Sturgeon Lake water-quality monitoring of the 16-week program this summer,” Grace said, referencing the Colon Township lake. “Once a week last year I went out and helped him, and this year he’s going to do it on his own.”
Also at Wednesday’s program, three Mendon Community Schools students will be recognized as winners of the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts-sponsored Poster Contest.
“Mendon was the only district in the county that participated; Carol Higgins was greatly involved and encouraged the students to make themed posters for the contest,” Grace said. “Their artwork gets displayed at the ISD and one of the entries, a kindergartener’s, will be on display at the Michigan History Museum in Lansing.”
Last year’s theme was “One Water,” which focuses on the water cycle. The 2024 poster theme is “May the Forest Be With You,” a Star Wars spin-off. Any student in the county is welcome to participate.
Grace said the annual meeting is, in a way, the agency’s Super Bowl.
A donation of $7 is suggested, as a meal will be provided. For planning purposes, Grace asked prospective attendees to please RSVP. She can be reached at 467-6336, Ext. 5.
“The annual meeting is an opportunity for the Conservation District to promote its annual tree sale, the river cleanup, lake water quality and the macroinvertebrates monitoring program,” she said. “It’s a celebration for us and an opportunity to showcase what we accomplished in 2023.”
Speaking of the annual spring seedling sale, Grace said orders will be accepted through April 26. Pick up is May 3 and 4 in Barn 28 at the St. Joseph County Fairgrounds in Centreville.
Nearly two dozen options are available and include conifers and deciduous trees, and various shrubs. The roster includes white oak, sugar maple, an assortment of spruce and fir trees, and flowering dogwood, pagoda dogwood and lilac bush.
Orders can be placed through the agency’s website: www.stjoecountycd.com.
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: St. Joseph County Conservation District holding annual meeting Wednesday
