Pathways for Radford

Selected Thursdays. If rain, moved to Recreation Center.

July 8 Pollinators and Predators -The Bees and Wasps of Wildwood Richard Fell: Virginia Tech Department of Entomology A look at some of the floral visitors and social insects found in the park.  Are they beneficial pollinators or dangerous stinging insects?  Gain a new appreciation for bees with a honey tasting!

July 22 Landscape photography – Wildwood and Beyond! Aileen Fletcher: New River Community College Join the digital revolution!  How to capture Wildwood landscapes and the scenery of your summer travels.  Get the most from your camera and unlock the mysteries of digital photography.

August 12 Raptors of the New River Valley Bill Opengari: Naturalist Learn how to identify hawks, eagles and falcons of Wildwood and beyond.  Our Appalachian mountains serve as major migration flyways in both spring and fall. Learn when and where to look for these magnificent birds.

Greg Paulsen, RU, 2002 August 26 Aquatic “Critters” of Connelly’s Run Frank Taylor: Radford High School Discover the amazing aquatic insects and crustaceans of Connelly’s Run and learn about their life histories.  Close-up photography and hands-on microscopic examinations of stream samples will highlight observations of mayflies, stoneflies, caddis flies and others.

We hope you will come out on Wed. 5/19 at 6:30 p.m. to participate in the Ride of Silence!! We will meet at Sal’s Parking lot.

Please help us to honor and remember those killed or injured while riding on public roadways.

Join cyclists worldwide in a silent, slow-paced ride in honor of those who have been hurt or killed while cycling on public roadways. If you can’t ride, please participate by standing along the sidewalks in support of the Ride.

This is a family-friendly event, and children are encouraged to participate (helmets are required). We will have a police escort along the 6.8-mile route and will ride at a slow pace. Though solemn, the group ride is enjoyable and inspirational to even the youngest riders. There is just something cool about being in this quiet, rolling parade.

Co-sponsored by the New River Valley Bicycle Association and Pathways for Radford, the New River Valley ride was first organized in 2008 after the untimely death of Fess Green, local professor and veteran cyclist. This year’s event will follow the same route, traversing Radford’s roads and scenic Riverway, which Fess was instrumental in building. This year we will honor local and visiting cyclists whose lives were cut short or affected by bike-auto crashes in the past year.

Staging will begin in the Sal’s parking lot at 6:30. Armbands will be available to those who wish to wear them.

Schedule of events:

6:30 – staging begins
6:45 – speakers and instructions
6:59 – moment of noise
7:00 – Ride of Silence begins

Participants are invited to gather at Sal’s following the ride.

Arbor Day/Environmental Improvement Month/Earth Day Activities

April 17^th 10 am to 1pm       See Descriptions of activities below

Please email Liz Altieri, Pathways President, ealtieri@radford.edu for more information and to sign up

1.      Repair of the Split Rail Fence in Wildwood Park – Chuck Kugler and Wilson Rankin, leaders

Please bring: a hammer, gloves, water to drink

NEEDED: 2 heavy duty wire cutters

MEET:  Outdoor Classroom in the middle of Wildwood Park

2.     Planting of Four Redbud Trees along Sundell Drive – Katy Miller and Joe Freeman, leaders

Please Bring: shovel, gardenrake, mulchfork/pitchfork if you have one, gloves, water to drink

MEET: Parking lot at 2^nd Avenue and Sundell, entrance to Wildwood and Riverway

3.     Mulching near the bathroom in Wildwood Park – Kate Brennan, leader

Please Bring: a pitchfork and wheelbarrow if you have one, gloves, water to drink

MEET:  Outdoor Classroom in the middle of Wildwood Park

4.     Trash pick up in Wildwood Park – Kate Brennan, leader

Please Bring: gloves, water to drink

MEET:  Outdoor Classroom in the middle of Wildwood Park

5.     Farmer’s Market Kick – Off / Pathways Booth – Laurie Buchwald

Educate, Distribute Literature

MEET:  Farmer’s Market downtown, 8am

Wildwood webmaster and RU professor Gary Coté will lead a walk through the Park on Saturday, April 3, sponsored by the New River Chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society and Pathways for Radford. The public is invited. We will meet at 9 am at the Main Street entrance (by the bank). We hope to see coltsfoot, hepatica, bloodroot, spring beauty, Persian speedwell, star chickweed, and more. All are welcome. For more information e-mail gcote@radford.edu. Please see the Wildflower page for photos and descriptions of all the flowers found in Wildwood Park!  http://www.radfordpl.org/wildwood/today/nonwoody.html

The winter weather seems to have made homebodies of us all!

Instead of a general membership meeting, this month’s Pathways meeting will be held as an Executive Council Planning Meeting at the home of Liz Altieri and Wilson Rankin, 2308 8^th Street, Radford from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, February 16^th.  You are more than welcome to attend if any of the following agenda items are of interest to you:

1. Spring Work Day – Repair of the Fences in Wildwood Park  and/or Radford Street Tree Assessment workday hosted by David Reichert, Virginia Dept. of Forestry
2. PFR input on the drainage project in Wildwood that will be part of the Second Avenue Project
3. Annual membership drive
4. Fess Green Memorial fund
5. Summer Lecture in the Park series for 2010

Bring your rake and a pie, and dress in lots of layers! We will gather at the Outdoor Classroom in Wildwood Park (near the new restroom and the site of the old pool) at 10 a.m., rake all the trails, then gather again at the classroom for pie, hot drinks and fellowship till noon. Hope to see you there. Contact Liz Altieri 239-9379 for more information.

We will meet at Bisset Park at 9:45 a.m. at the tennis courts under the bridge. Wear sturdy shoes and work gloves, and bring a shovel or garden fork, if you have one. Check this website at 8 am for weather cancellation. Rain date – Saturday, Nov. 14. Please contact Wilson Rankin wrankin@radford.edu  or Liz Altieri ealtieri@radford.edu if you can help.

This event sponsored by the City of Radford and the Virginia Department of Forestry is part of the riverbank restoration project made possible through a Water Quality Improvement Grant from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation. The grant is a collaboration between the  City of Radford, RU Biology Department, the Radford Beautification and Municipal Forestry Commission, Pathways for Radford and the Virginia Department of Forestry.  The work will be accomplished by volunteers from Pathways for Radford , the RU student chapters of The Wildlife Society, Tri-Beta Honors Society, and Rotaract, as well as students from  the RU Honors Academy and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism.

Pathways For Radford returns to the Side Door!!

3^rd Avenue and Grove

Wednesday, October 21, 7:00-8:30 p.m.

7:00  Meet and Greet Libations provided by the Executive Council

7:20  Program

Tips for Fall Tree Planting

David Richert, Certified Forester, Virginia Department of Forestry

8:00  Business Meeting

• Elections
• Planning for Nov. 7^th Riverway Tree Planting with Judy Guinan, Radford University Biology Department
• Planning for Rake Leaves, Eat Pie

Please mark these dates on your calendars:

Riverway Tree Planting in Bisset Park, Saturday, November 7^th (rain date, Nov. 14)

Rake Leaves, Eat Pie, Saturday, November 28

Holiday Gathering and Caroling in the Park, Wednesday, December 16

1st Meeting of Fall, Wednesday, September 23, 7:00-8:30   Share and Plan!

We will meet in the Senior Room of the Radford Recreation Center. There is a separate entrance and parking area at the far end of the building. Please bring a sweet or fruit to share. Executive Council will provide soft drinks and water.

Share

Please send a few pictures from your summer travels and adventures with nature to Liz at elizabethmaltieri@gmail.com .

Liz will create a slideshow with Picasa for all to view during meet and greet. We will begin our meeting with members telling us a little about their photos.

Elections

We have two officers whose terms are ending in September and whose positions come up for election this fall. The positions are Secretary and Vice President of Trails. We also are seeking someone to fill our still vacant Vice President for Public Relations. Please submit nominations of yourself or someone else for one or more of these positions and send name/s to Laurie Buchwald, Secretary at lbuchwald@verizon.net

Agenda

Member Sharing

1. Announcement of Election and description of open positions
2. President’s Report
3. Making decisions about and planning for fall events: Walk/Bike to School Day, Riverway Tree Planting, Rake Leaves, Eat Pie

Tonight’s lecture Mother of Pearl! has been rescheduled due to rain for NEXT Thursday, August 27th, Wildwood Park Outdoor Classroom, 7:30 p.m.