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Showing a little appreciation
Kids learn to be stewards of the environment at PRAD
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009
 Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photos by DARWIN WEIGEL
Elizabeth Moorman, 4, of Alexandria, Va., gets a pony ride from Cocoa's Corral Sunday at the annual Patuxent River Appreciation Days at the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons. Moorman was down visiting her grandparents.
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After a blustery and gray Saturday that had some vendors fighting gusts of wind to hold down their wares, Sunday brought in a perfect blue-sky day for Patuxent River Appreciation Days on the grounds of Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons.
PRAD, hosted by the museum, is a two-day celebration to bring awareness to local environmental issues and opportunities and gathers local artisans who sell their arts and crafts.
Solo musicians and bands played varying genres of music during the weekend event as people strolled the museum's parking lot viewing original art, jewelry and crafts and took advantage of touring the museum for free.
Along with arts and crafts booths, parents and their kids roamed to environmental and nautical themed booths set up with hands-on activities for the kids.
The Audubon Society of Southern Maryland booth gave kids a chance to learn the names of different birds and handed out small model birds.
Liberty Washell, 8, displayed a bird recalling the name, a cedar waxwing. "Mostly, everything," was her response to what she liked best as she waited in line to climb through a rope bridge. Her grandmother listed the many activities in which Liberty had participated, including rowing a boat, making a model boat and watching the parade.
Seventh-grader Kyle Gronda said Boy Scout Troop 427 from Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church set up the rope bridge and helped kids across.
The Southern Maryland Oyster Cultivation Society gave kids the opportunity to try to grasp oyster shells using watermen tongs while they stood in a small wooden boat.
Matthew Dennis, 6, said, "it was fun" while 6-year-old Kolton Blackistone said grasping oyster shells was harder than he thought it would be. Kolton's sister, Lily Blackistone, 4, preferred making sand art in a bottle, saying, "I like it," as she displayed her piece of bottled art. Matthew's sister, Abby, 9, also said that making the sand art was the favorite thing she did that day.
Karen and Len Zuza started the society about three years ago and they have set up oyster beds in creeks of the Patuxent River using old oyster shells and then placing live oyster shells on top. They have placed "over half a million oysters this year," Len said.
"Hopefully, in the creeks we'll make a difference," Karen said. A 55-gallon barrel with one oyster shell on top demonstrated how much water one oyster can filter in a day.
"They can see what an oyster can do," Karen said of kids looking at the barrel displayed.
Stephen Groff, 8, said his favorite activity was "building the boat" and several boys around his age agreed, showing off their model wooden boats. Stephen's mother Susan Groff said he also "likes to talk with the fossil people. He's a fossil hunter." While Stephen was busy painting at The Garden Pot booth, his mother said of him, "This one has come and painted a lighthouse every year." Many other kids and parents sat and painted ceramic pumpkins and other pieces after purchasing them.
Shortly before 2 p.m., crowds lined the parade route as bands, service organizations, dignitaries and Boy and Girl Scout troops walked along while some Shriners buzzed the road in miniature race cars and all-terrain vehicles.
"I liked the drums and ponies," said 4-year old Heather Shaw. Her 10-year-old sister Vanessa's parade favorite was the U.S. Coast Guard. The rescue vehicle and fire trucks from Solomons Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad finished off the parade and the crowds dispersed to rove the many booths again and enjoy the crisp fall air.
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