As a board member of the Highland Conservancy, I create the theme for each year's poster contest for our annual Huron Valley earth day event. Last year for our earth day posters we focused on endangered animals and extinction, looking at various ways to help prevent this from happening. For our theme this year, the focus became saving animal habitat: how can we help save animals from extinction by protecting or restoring their homes? Connecting the theme with the previous year also provided a nice bridge to finding positive solutions to a difficult problem. Can we create parks, plant trees, plant wildflowers, enrich the soil, create safe migratory pathways? Students came up with their own ideas and then illustrated their poster with a slogan, facts and a drawing of an animal in its habitat.
The posters have been judged and were put up for the annual earth day celebration at Carls Family YMCA Sunday, April 26, 2015. I am proud at the depth of learning of our Oxbow and Brooks students. They often surprise me with their creative solutions to help affect positive change! First through fourth place elementary division winners were: Meghan Hudson, Jackson Campbell, Emily Hughes and Emily Bowron. For middle school the winners were: Lauren Garbovitz, Morgan Sprader, Emily Broman and Michael Roycht. Congratulations!