January Newsletter and Events

In this month's issue, we have:

• Annual Meeting, Thursday, 1/16
• Adopt-A-Park Volunteer Work Day (Invasives/English Ivy Removal), Saturday, 1/18
• Other News
•  “Main Street” Indian River Holiday Lighting and Decoration Contest Winners
• Rokeby Garden Club
• Tidewater Master Naturalist Training
• Chesapeake Conservation Conference

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Annual Meeting

Date: Thursday, January 16th, 7 pm
Location: Oaklette United Methodist Church, 520 Oaklette Dr.

In 2020, we will continue our many partnerships to improve the quality of life in our community. As well as our continuing cleanup, beautification, and environmental restoration efforts, we'll also be working with the city on the Indian River Small Area Plan, the City's overall Comprehensive Plan, an Indian River Park Trail Management Plan. 

Please join us at our Annual Meeting on Thursday, January 16th, 7 pm as we hold election for our board and review plans for the coming year!

As we look forward to 2020, you can review our success for last year in our year end report at http://www.friendsofindianriver.org/2019/12/2019-year-end-report.html

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Adopt-A-Park Volunteer Work Day (Invasives/English Ivy Removal)

Date: Saturday, January 18
9 am to Noon
Meet at the park entrance at Rokeby Ave. and Main St. (2001 Rokeby Ave.)

We'll be working on invasive plant removal, particularly English Ivy.   Come help us control this scourge. The more volunteers that come out, the more that we can accomplish!  For those that are interested in doing more and joining our R.I.P. (Remove Invasive Plants) team, we will also be doing an invasive species identification workshop this morning to identify English Ivy, Chinese Privet, and Multi-floral Rose in the park.

Please wear closed-toe shoes, a hat and bring work gloves. Bring pruning clippers, loppers, screwdrivers (which are amazingly useful in prying ivy off tree trunks) and/or pruning saws if you have them.  We will have water and lots of snacks. (We also always encourage folks to bring their own water in reusable bottles to minimize use of plastic bottles). Participants under 18 years of age must have adult supervision

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Other News

Congratulations to the winners of our "Main Street" Indian River Holiday Decoration Contest:

- Mobile Pig-Nic Catering / The Pig Shop Restaurant, 
- Wickers Crab Pot Seafood Restaurant
- Botanica Spiritual House Supply Store

and to our Honorable Mentions - NAE Federal Credit Union, Midway Veterinary Hospital, Affordable Transmissions, Vohringer & Bryant Chiropractic, T-Mobile, Subway, Trade Team USA, Moulton Tax Service, and KFC/Taco Bell.  Thank you for helping to make our community sparkle!

The Rokeby Garden Club is meeting Wednesday, January 15,1 to 3 pm, with guest speaker Sue DiStefano from the Norfolk Master Gardeners discussing how to Jumpstart Your Garden with Seeds.  No registration is required to attend; for residents "55 and better" who love plants and gardening. For more information call or visit the Rokeby Center at 757-822-6259.  https://www.facebook.com/events/2853041248081835/

The Tidewater Master Naturalist are taking applications for the spring training course through January 19. This highly recommended program is for anyone wanting to learn more about our natural world and how it works. The classes run on Monday evenings from March through mid-May.  Learn more about the course and how to sign up at https://tidewatermn.org/

Registration is now open for the Chesapeake Conservation Conference and Environmental Awards Luncheon on Friday, March 6. The conference will bring together the environmental and conservation community of the City of Chesapeake for a day of networking, planning and learning. Panel-led discussions with related Question & Answer sessions will address the following topics: Parks and Natural Areas, Land and Water Conservation, Home and Garden, and Coastal Resilience. Early bird registration is until February 14th.  Learn more at http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/ConservationConference