| To: Brattleboro Reformer From: Townshend Elementary School
Re: Press Release
Townshend Elementary School Students host a Forest Community Forum
The Townshend Elementary School second and fifth graders invite all Townshend residents to a Forest Community Forum on Monday June 18th from 5:30-7:00 pm at the Town Hall. Light dinner, beverages and desserts will be available during the event.
The students will be presenting a slide show of their year long study of the forest, performing a Speak Chorus and sharing the results of the survey and interviews they conducted. James Daley from the Northern Forest Alliance will give a presentation on Town Forests. Following the presentations, students and community members will hold small group discussions to plan for future access to forested lands in Townshend. According to the fifth grade students, “We have decided that we want forests in our community and our lives forever!” |
Spread the word . . .
EVERYONE IN TOWN IS INVITED to a FOREST COMMUNITY FORUM
Monday June 18th , 2007 5:30 - 7:00 pm TOWN HALL
PRESENTATIONS BY Elementary School 2nd and 5th Graders James Daley from Northern Forest Alliance & ROUND TABLE DISCUSSIONS led by students and community members
Please join us to celebrate our work and plan for the future
Finger food dinner, soft drinks, coffee and dessert will be provided.
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TOWNSHEND FOREST COMMUNITY FORUM MONDAY JUNE 18TH, 2007 5:00 - 7:00 PM TOWN HALL
AGENDA
1. Welcome and Introduction: Barbara Bedortha and Julie Dolan
2. Slide Show: Townshend Elementary 2nd and 5th graders
3. Speak Chorus: Townshend Elementary 5th Grade
4. Town Forest: James Daley from the Northern Forest Alliance
5. Round Table Discussions:
• Town Forest: Barbara Bedortha and KB
• Harmonyville Trail: Dave Barnum and NL
• Extending the Elder Care trail: Julie Dolan and TW
• West River Railroad Trail: Steve Overden, DJ and BL
• Ancient Roads: TBD
• Recreation: Sarah Tarbell, NT and AD
6. Committee Sign-up
food, beverages and displays will be available throughout the program. |
THE FOREST A Speak Chorus Words by Townshend Elementary School Fifth Grade All: We love the Forest. BL: The forest is a big part of our lives. We live surrounded by trees. AD: Eighty-five percent of Townshend is forested land. KB : When I'm in the forest I see shades of brown and green and it smells like pine and fresh air. All: We use the Forest. DJ: We live, play, build, hunt, cut, sugar, hike and work in the forest. RB: I think the forest is fun. AD: We can play with our friends. RB: It gives me shade. DJ: I can climb up trees. KB: I can relax in the forest. RB: I can see a lot of animals in the forest. AD: You can also enjoy the forest by just going and sitting on a stump. All: We need the forest. AD: Trees provide homes for animals and people. KB: Their roots prevent erosion and their leaves provide shade in the summer. TW: Trees absorb carbon dioxide and give us oxygen. BL: I like how trees can keep the air and the water clean. KB: They provide us with resources such as wood, food and fuel. NT: They provide jobs such as building, woodworking, logging, sugaring, landscaping and forestry. All: We learned about the forest by being in the forest. NT: We went sugaring with my family. DJ: We hiked with geologists, naturalists and foresters. BL: We have learned how trees grow and have learned to identify them by looking at their bark, leaves, needles, buds, shape and location. CE: I learned how to identify the trees by their leaves and by their bark and by their needles. BL: In the beginning of the year, I did not know anything about the forest. It changed, even just walking in the forest because I can identify the trees. DJ: I feel now that I have a stronger relationship with the trees from knowing how to identify them. |
| All: We have written and drawn in our journals. CE: My spot is on a blown over tree. There are a lot of pine, spruce and fir trees. I can hear birds. I can see a lot of dead trees AD: The forest gives beauty homes life animals and play spots All: We climbed four mountains. NL: Mt. Mansfield TW: We were above the tree line. NL: Mt. Philo BL:
We learned about the rocks beneath the forest. AD: We saw how the glaciers left behind soil for the trees to grow. NL: Bald Mountain KB: We hiked with foresters and learned how they manage the forest. BL: We spent an awesome week at Keewaydin. NL: hiking on Mt. Moosalamoo BL: Learning about communities and impact. NT: We spent a day up at the Marsh Billings-Rockefeller National Park, KB: and the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Pines. NL: We saw some of the largest trees in the State. AD: We learned about conservation. Kesley: I learned that the forest is always changing, everyday, in every way. TW: We walked on the new Elder Care trail behind the hospital and watched the changes as they cleared the woods for the new Valley Cares housing project. TW: The forest is a wonderful place. The forest has many different uses. It could be cut down to make shelter. BL: We went to town meeting to hand out a survey. AD: We asked people to tell us how they used the forest. and what they thought of the new Valley Cares Housing project. |
All: People have different opinions. TW: But I don't like people cutting down too many trees because animals live in those trees. At the time, probably a squirrel is finding food for her babies or a woodpecker could be making a home. KB: There are many kinds of trees and each kind of tree helps in different ways. All trees are different just like you and me. The woods are helpful to everyone. To me trees are important. DJ: If our world had no trees it would not be beautiful. Kesley: The forest is a beautiful place, you just got to take the time to look, like the saying, "Stop and smell the flowers." NL: We need the forests to live; to take in carbon dioxide and provide oxygen for us to breath. DJ: We need the forest for furniture and houses. TW: If we didn't have forests, a lot of animals we love would be lost. NT: If we didn't have forests, a lot of people wouldn't have jobs. TW: Some parts of the world are posted for wildlife. NT: Some parts of the world are needed for harvesting. All: We need to share the forest. BL: We are holding this Community Forum because we believe the forest is imporant KB: We want to share what we've learned NL: And participate in planning for the future. BL: If you think about it, if we didn't have trees, we would not be here. DJ: Trees help us live our lives All: by just living theirs. AD: I think that the forest is a big part of our lives. BL: I always want the forest to be a part of my life.
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