August 2009 - Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources

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10 K E N T U C K Y F I S H & W I L D L I F E C O M M I S S I O N E R ’ S N E W S L E T T E R Donan and Georgia “Jo” Jenkins Scholarship Fund recipients Congratulations to the 2009 recipients of the Donan and Georgia “Jo” Jenkins Scholarship Fund. John Evan Akers, son of John Akers, Maintenance Section Supervisor in our Engineering Division, is a scholarship winner. John Evan is attending the University of Kentucky and majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Rebecca Ann Patton, daughter of Deputy Commissioner Hank Patton and Susan Patton, also is a scholarship recipient. Rebecca will be attending Eastern Kentucky University this fall and plans to major in Communications. The Donan and Georgia “Jo” Jenkins Scholarship was created and funded by retired 2nd District Law Enforcement Captain, Donan Jenkins. This scholarship is available for college bound children of current or retired non-Law Enforcement KDFWR employees. SOUTHWARD BOUND Signaling autumn’s approach, purple martins are assembling into groups and beginning their long migration to South America. This group joined a few residents, circled the area for about 10 minutes, and then as if on cue, took off together. This time of year the birds usually join a large communal roost that can consist of a hundred thousand birds or more. Then after a few weeks they begin their migration. We’ll look for them again in early spring. (Left to right) John Akers, John Evan Akers, Rebecca Patton, Susan Patton and Hank Patton. A total of $3,000 is available for up to three applicants. Jenkins also established a scholarship fund for Law Enforcement employees only that is administered by the Kentucky Conservation Officers Association.
A U G U S T 2 0 0 9 Meece Middle School visits Camp Earl Wallace Approximately 90 fifth graders and a few teachers and chaperones from Somerset’s Meece Middle School arrived Friday, April 24, for their second annual field trip to Camp Earl Wallace. This year when CEPL Betty Lewis returned to teach conservation, the teachers were waiting anxiously to find out if they could have the field trip again, exclaiming, “We would even pay if we have to!” The staff at Meece seems to have a very high value for outdoor education and have eagerly taken part in all KDFWR programs offered. When the buses arrived about midmorning, the students were welcomed and given instructions on what to expect for the day. Students and teachers broke into three groups and went in rotation to three different activities planned and staffed by KDFWR employees. At the fishing dock they received basic fishing instruction and got to fish with Jamie Alton and Marc Johnson (both with Aquatic Ed) and John Coffey. For “Animal Adventures,” they had lots of fun learning about animal artifacts with Scott Couch and Thomas Blackwell. While at “Outdoor Survival,” they learned to “Hug a Tree” and build a shoestring shelter with Betty Lewis and Joyce Fitzgerald. After the activities, the students ate their school-prepared lunch in the cafeteria and afterwards entertained everyone with renditions of their lessons on Black Bears in Kentucky. Great fun was had by all. Over the weekend some parents from Meece called to register their children for Camp Earl Wallace for this summer. “My teachers at Meece have stressed that Outdoor Recreational Sports are so very important to our young students,” said Lewis. “Having the ability to add the hands-on experiences to my school programs with this field trip to camp offers an invaluable chance for these students to make a definite connection from the classroom to the outdoors while having trained staff ready to answer their questions. The “Dix,” continued 11 WMA is flooded at times because it is so flat and surrounded by the river and streams. Normally, water on the WMA’s fields is confined to wetland impoundments that were designed by KDFWR staff working together with Ducks Unlimited, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Kentucky Division of Water. Most of the WMA was historically cropped. Drainage ditches and underground tiles helped dry the area enough during the growing season to allow farmers to plant and harvest. To restore the land’s original wetland functions, some of these water diversions must be removed or altered. In some cases, levees (low dams) are constructed to help the land hold water again. Most of the wetland restoration on Dix River WMA was made possible by the Wetland Reserve Program, a USDA program that helps landowners with projects like this. A portion of the wetland work done to date on the WMA was funded through our Wetland and Stream Mitigation Program. Brian worked with Mike Hardin and Doug Dawson from KDFWR’s Environmental Section staff to design, fund and construct projects. Some of the wetlands have been planted to bottomland hardwood trees, which will provide important food and cover to wildlife for generations to come. Nesting boxes have been placed around the WMA for wood ducks and songbirds such as eastern bluebirds, tree swallows and prothonotary warblers. only way to improve on this is to have them all come to camp this summer!” Special thanks to all who helped with this event and also to Camp Earl Wallace’s Rockie Frost, Montie Frost and John Cooper.
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Page 3 and 4: A U G U S T 2 0 0 9 Lt. Herb Booth,
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Page 9: A U G U S T 2 0 0 9 New fishing pie

August 2009 - Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources

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