By Chris Zdinak, VISTA for FVWG and Kelsey McCoy, VISTA for Media
On Thursday, February 7, a group of community

Federal Creek is a tributary of the Hocking River in southeastern Ohio. The watershed covers an area of approximately 145 square miles. Federal Valley Watershed is located within three counties: Athens (88 mi2 ), Morgan (45 mi2 ), and Washington (12 mi2 ). Click here to see a map of the watershed.
The February 7th meeting included a brief presentation by Rural Action Director of Watersheds Mike Steinmaus. Mike told the story of the watershed, beginning with the Amesville floods, which occurred in the late 1990s. This was the genesis of community organization, and over time, landowners and community members came together to address issues in the watershed. An action plan was approved in 2006, and since then, FVWG has provided resources, education, and outreach to community members interested in restoring and preserving the assets in and around Federal Creek.
After Mike’s presentation, the group engaged in a discussion about possibilities for a watershed organization in the coming years. The attendees expressed an interest in holistic management practices, which would take into account all factors influencing the health of the watershed: environmental, social, and cultural. Attendees also shared ideas about possibilities for land use in the watershed area, such as land conservation easements.
At the end of the meeting, attendees expressed an interest in organizing a steering committee to identify how to rebuild a viable watershed group. The next meeting will be on Thursday, March 6 at 7pm at Amesville Grange Hall. Watershed residents and all those interested in planning for the future of the Federal Valley Watershed are encouraged to attend. Contact Chris Zdinak for more information (fvwgvista@ruralaction.org or 740-767-4938).
Volunteer and Get First Dibs on Free Seeds
CFI Seed Bagging at Rural Action on Thursday, February 14
By Kelsey McCoy, VISTA for Media

Youth Act Program Has A Variety of Projects in the Works
By Christine Farr, VISTA for Youth Act
On January 15th I began working at Trimble Middle School with several of Linda Craddock’s “Choices Classes,” which include 115 seventh and eighth graders. In addition to my frequent meetings with students at TMS, I am working with a youth group at Canaanville Methodist Church in Stewart. The program engages 16 youths aged 9 to 18, and meets every Wednesday.

At Canaanville Methodist Church, the youth group chose a number of projects: forming a choir that includes kids from Amesville and Federal Hocking Schools, organizing a cleanup project in Stewart, and campaigning to raise awareness about the stray animal problem in Stewart. The choir project is moving right along, and we are working on making a recruitment flyer a few of the students will post in their schools.
If you are interested in getting involved with Youth Act, please contact me at Christine@ruralaction.org or 740-767-4938.
Rural Renewal Strategy Update
By Katie Durham, VISTA for Rural Renewal
Within the past few weeks, our Steering Committee has really re-vamped the immediate direction that the Learning Circles will be taking. The Circles will be concluding with their next meeting unless they would like to continue on to explore specific program tracks. Subjects that will be discussed during the last series of Learning Circle meetings will be comparing and contrasting the original themes and wishes that came up during the House Parties (from winter 2006), as well as boldly defining various program directions as they would be at their ideal state, and then finding both what assets Rural Action has and doesn’t have in order to make this vision a reality.
The first Learning Circle to meet this year was Energy, who convened on February 11. They have formally decided to move on and become a committee—committing towards the enhancement of membership and delving deeper into specific energy issues and potential programming. The active members include Scott Miller, Dana Carlson, Jeanne Haseley, Lois Whealey, Sarah Watling, and others. We hope to have Matt Bennett in attendance at the next meeting as well, to guide us in the direction of energy auditing opportunities for the region.
Our next, and potentially last, Learning Circle meeting dates are:
- Community Leadership & Youth:
- Tuesday, February 26, 5:30-7:00, Rural Action Trimble office
- Energy:
- Monday, March 17, 5:30-7:00, The Ridges Building #22
- Land Restoration:
- Tuesday, March 18, 5:30-7:00, Rural Action Trimble office.
Membership Update
By Jordan Vincint, VISTA for Development
Rural Action would not be in existence without the kind and generous support of the community. We would like to recognize and thank those who have recently become members:
Gayle Bowling
Caleb Congrove
Cindy and Caty Crabb
Lisa Steinberg
Caleb Congrove
Cindy and Caty Crabb
Lisa Steinberg
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