The Wayland Schools’ Green Team and the WHS Environmental Club invite you to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day on Sunday April 11, 2010 at the Wayland Town Building, 41 Cochituate Rd, from 11am to 2pm. This community event is designed to mobilize each of us to make small changes in our homes, our schools and our businesses that will add up to a significant positive impact on our environment!
“We are delighted with the response we have received from the community,” said Christina Veal, Chair of the Green Team. “This is shaping up to be such a fabulous event. There will be plenty of fun for everyone, but more importantly, this event is designed to encourage all of us to become better stewards of our planet.”
Numerous organizations and committees will be on hand to describe their roles in helping us become more environmentally friendly. Many will have hands-on activities for children including trash to treasures crafts, planting seedlings and making toolboxes from scrap wood. Kids can also make birdfeeders with peanut butter, maracas from water bottles, and of course, get their faces painted.
High School environmental science students will exhibit some of their projects, the Recycling Club will show how they helped initiate a paper and plastic recycling program at the high school and you’ll be able to find out about the No Idling Campaign, coming soon to every Wayland school. “These students have worked so hard putting together their projects and helping with this Earth Day Event. It is a pleasure to see all our hard work coming together,” said Emily Norton, Environmental Science teacher.
Decorating for a green event can be challenging. Environmentally inspired Earth Day contest posters from our elementary school kids will be displayed with pride. What else? The usual trash-producing paraphernalia just won’t cut it. Committee member Molly Faulkner came up with the idea of bottle bouquets, more in keeping with the “reduce, reuse, recycle” theme, and that got the reusable ball rolling!
Rain barrels and composters from The Department of Public Works will be on display. These new products can help reduce our municipal water use and the costs of processing food waste at our landfill.
There will be entertainment for children of all ages. Smokey the Bear will on hand to welcome visitors (unless he has to be off fighting wild fires). Turtle hatchlings will delight us; Peter Alden, Audubon naturalist and author, will have a table to sell his books and he'll co-lead a nature walk; and Joules the Energy Magician will amaze and entertain as he teaches us how to conserve energy.
Rain or shine our Earth Day Event is on April 11th – in the Town Building courtyard or gym. Wayland Earth Day Weekend kicks off on April 10th with Wayland Cleans Up town-wide roadside pick up organized by Cliff Kolovson and Chris DeVany. (Additional information at http://cleanup.pointed.com/.) For more information about the Earth Day Event, contact Christina Veal at 508-652-1903 or cveal1@comcast.net .
