Painted rain barrels spruce up yard and are good for the environment

"Slide down my rain barrel,

And through my cellar door.

And we'll be jolly friends,

Forevermore, more."

- Old traditional song

If Geneva's Natural Resources Committee has its way, many residents could be singing that old song. They could put something to their yard that not only adds a decorative touch but which is also good for the environment.

Similar to the popular "cows on parade" exhibit in Chicago several years ago, the committee is sponsoring a "Rain Barrels on Parade" campaign.

The committee is working with retailers and merchants to purchase rain barrels - committee members have already primed them - that can then be painted, decorated and displayed all summer on Third Street and State Street.

"They really create an interesting buzz on the street," said Jay Womack, chair of the committee that is a subcommittee of the Strategic Plan Advisory Committee.

He and member Brad Koontz came up with the rain barrel idea and took it to Carolyn Dellutri, downtown development coordinator. Koontz made a presentation to a merchants' group, which embraced the idea to the tune of five immediate rain barrel orders.

"The next thing we knew, we had 20 orders," Womack said.

An additional 10 or so followed, and currently about a half-dozen brightly, beautifully decorated barrels are on display. Check out the Paper Merchant (328 S. Third St.), Cocoon (212 S. Third St.), Strawflower Shop (210 W. State St.) and D. Grunwald's Fine Jewelers (12 S. Third St.), all in downtown Geneva, to name some of the locations where the barrels add beauty.

Indeed, Paper Merchant, at least during Swedish Days, boasted three barrels. Womack's neighbor, Joe Stuart, an art teacher at Elgin Academy, painted two barrels purchased by the committee. Both are reminiscent of Monet's work, with one featuring irises and the other, sunflowers.

The decorated display barrels will be auctioned off at 2 p.m. Sept. 14 on the terrace of the Paper Merchant. That day is the final day of the annual Festival of the Vine celebration.

Proceeds will go to fund further environmental efforts, Womack said.

Residents can get into the act, too, impacting the environment favorably.

The barrels hold 55 gallons of water to be used for watering plants, cleaning gardening tools, washing the car, even mixing cement for small outdoor projects, Womack said. "Anything you'd use potable water for outside, you can use this water for," he said.

"If every home had one or two rain barrels, tens of thousands of gallons of water could be recycled into our own landscapes, instead of going into the sewer system and then the Fox River," Womack pointed out. Every time it rains, the Fox River and other local streams and tributaries eventually collect the pesticides off our driveways and landscapes, he said. How much better it would be for all if rainwater instead were captured, and then reused.

"We're so used to having potable water at our fingertips," he said. "This is a really simple choice (to help the environment). We're trying to show through education that there are really simple things people can do on a regular basis."

Using the water from a rain barrel isn't difficult, it's not a radical change, he said. "But all these changes add up. That's what we're trying to show."

This isn't the first "little change" the group has backed. Two years ago, committee members came up with the "change the light, change the world" campaign, giving out compact fluorescent light bulbs to patrons at the Festival of the Vine festival. Those who took the bulbs simply had to promise to change out their incandescent bulbs for the more environmentally friendly illuminators.

"If we can make incremental steps, be a better person with regards to how we act toward the environment, it adds up," Womack said.

Residents can obtain a rain barrel (or two! - residents can direct their downspouts into a barrel) by contacting Brad Koontz, at koontzbr@yahoo.com. Barrels are $75 each.

Then go to town with paint. Your barrel can add beauty to the environment, inside and out.