Geneva celebrates Earth Day at Peck Farm Park

A hike and cleanup kicked off Geneva's annual Earth Day celebration Saturday at Peck Farm Park.

During the cleanup, Kayla Villa, 14, of St. Charles gathered large handfuls of plastic bags and other trash from the native plant areas with her mother, Kathleen, as they walked through the park. Kayla prompted the family outing and said she's done similar cleanup events with her school, but never as an activity with her family.

"When we drive past places and you see all the garbage, it's kind of, like, sad. So I wanted to make it prettier and help the animals and stuff," Kayla said.

Residents were able to purchase rain barrels, get a bicycle safety check, learn best green practices, shred documents for free and recycle electronics. Local garden vendors were selling selections of native plants residents could plant at their homes to help with wildlife habitat and to attract birds and insects.

Dart Container Corp. was accepting the No. 6 Styrofoam packaging that regular recycling pick up does not include. It is cleaned and shredded to be used for packing material. Other Earth Day highlights included a kids fun run, chalk art, children's activities, yoga and chair massages.

"Earth Day is a day of celebration, and we want to show people that a single person can make a difference," said Jay Womack, chairman of the board for the Natural Resources Committee of Geneva. Participating vendors offered "different techniques and materials and things that are better choices for our lives. And we want people to have the opportunity to see what's out there, what can be offered and what they can do in their home."

"It also encourages families to come out and do something together, and that's part of what we stand for: encouraging people to engage with nature," Womack said.

For more information about the Natural Resource Committee of Geneva, visit facebook.com/NRCgeneva, or geneva.il.us.