MCC programs can help you go green
McHenry County College continues with a variety of "green programs" to teach people how they can change the world by starting in their own backyards.
"Everyone wants to contribute to preserving our Earth's resources, but we don't always know how to proceed," said Gwen Koehler, executive dean of Corporate, Continuing and Adult Education at MCC. "These green programs offer something for everyone to help us do our part."
To register, call the MCC Registration Office at (815) 455-8588 unless otherwise noted. For information, call Wendy Lauen at (815) 479-7570 unless otherwise noted.
Here are programs in March and April:
• Green Gardening: This class will discuss the benefits of composting and natural alternatives to using harsh pesticides, herbicides, or chemical-based fertilizers. Class will meet from 6:30 to 8 p.m. March 27 at MCC, Room E104. Cost is $25. Use Course ID: NHG S41 003 when registering.
• Gardenfest: Join storyteller, master gardener and organic farmer Rich Tobiasz as he leads participants on a tale from Chicago in the 1950s to today's greener McHenry County. Several mini workshops are available including Shade Garden, Hypertufu and Rain Gardens. The event will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 5. For a brochure with detailed information, call Molly Walsh at (815) 455-8697.
• Green Gardening Retired Adult Program members will learn about environmentally friendly practices for the yard and garden with MCC horticulture instructor Bruce Spangenberg. Topics will include improving soils, plant selection, mulching, fertilizer use, beneficial insects, and alternative pesticide products. This class will meet from 1:30 to 3 p.m. April 10 in Room B168 at MCC. Cost is $6 for RAP members. To become a member, a $25 fee, renewable each year, is required. Call Cindy Kearns at (815) 479-7605.
• Great Masters of Art Retired Adult Program members will hear a lecture on the biography and work of Aldo Leopold, a writer, illustrator and environmentalist, and discuss how this artist changed the history of art during his lifetime. This lecture will meet from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. April 15 at MCC, Room B166. Cost is $12 for RAP members. To become a member, a $25 fee, renewable each year, is required. Call Cindy Kearns at (815) 479-7605.
• Energy Efficiency and Green Remodeling: This information-packed workshop will show you how to select green materials and products, improve energy conservation, avoid mistakes that come with renovating a house, and consider whether to incorporate renewable energy. Samples of green products for the home will be on display. This workshop will meet from 7 to 9 p.m. April 17 at MCC, Room A102. Cost is $10. Use Course ID: NHG S23 004 when registering.
• Earth Day: Celebrate Earth Day by visiting the Honey Acres Bee Farm in Oconomowoc, Wis. Visitors will learn the importance of bees to our environment. Lunch will be at Spinnakers Restaurant, overlooking Lac La Belle. Participants also will visit Ebert's Greenhouse Village and pot their own plant to take home. The trip will leave at 8:30 a.m. and return at 6 p.m. April 22. Cost is $75. Use Course ID: NST S05 001 when registering.
• ABC Breakfast: This Academics, Business and Community breakfast will feature Time magazine's "Hero for the Planet," John Cronin, who works as a Hudson riverkeeper, commercial fisherman and environmentalist. Cronin will presents "Change the World -- Start in Your Own Backyard" at 7:30 a.m. April 23 in the MCC multipurpose room in Building A. This writer and award-winning documentary filmmaker co-authored "The Riverkeepers" with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Admission is $25 per person. To register online, visit www.mchenry.edu/abc. For information, contact Linda Buerger at (815) 455-8556.