Celebrate beauty of Fox River at cleanup day activities
Submitted by Environmental Defenders of McHenry County
The Environmental Defenders of McHenry County and the village of Algonquin are sponsoring the fifth annual It’s Our River Day celebration and cleanup. The event will be from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15, at Cornish Park at South Harrison Street and Route 62, at the dam, in downtown Algonquin.
It’s Our River Day, a statewide celebration, kicks off in Algonquin with speakers at 1 p.m., including a welcome by a village representative. Brief presentations will be given by Gary Swick of Friends of the Fox River, Cindy Skrukrud of the Sierra Club, Jodie Auliff of The Illinois Water Trailkeepers from the Illinois Paddling Council and Prairie State Canoeists, and Bill Silva of Prairie Coast Paddlers.
The Prairie Coast Paddlers will give kayak demonstrations after the talks conclude and at 2 p.m. the cleanup begins. The Illinois Water Trailkeepers from the Illinois Paddling Council and members from the Prairie State Canoeists will conduct an in-river cleanup between Cornish Park and Buffalo Park. The Sierra Club will provide bags and gloves for the shoreline cleanup. At 3 p.m., Friends of the Fox River will do water quality monitoring for those interested in learning. And, Gary Kanner of the Cub Scouts will hold geocaching for the kids.
Celebrate the Fox River and help keep her clean while learning more about local environmental and conservation groups. The event is free and open to the public. Groups are welcome.
For more information, contact the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County at (815) 338-0393 or visit www.mcdef.org.