Earlier this spring, 4th grade students from Cherokee, MMCRU, Alta-Aurelia, and River Valley had an opportunity to participate in the Cherokee County Soil & Water Conservation District’s poster contest.
The theme of this year’s contest was “Healthy Soil: Healthy Life”. Nick Livermore, District Conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Laura Jones, Director and Naturalist for the Cherokee County Conservation Board talked with the 4th graders about the origins and makeup of our state’s soils. Once they gave background on our soils, they talked about the importance of taking care of these soils, and what that means for the life that is sustained in, on, and from the soil.
Posters were judged on the following criteria: 50% for conservation message, 30% for visual effectiveness, 10% for originality, and 10% for universal appeal.
Cherokee SWCD Commissioner Ramona Nitz presented the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners from each school with ribbons, certificates, and Dairy Queen gift cards from the Cherokee SWCD.
From Cherokee the winners were Kenzie Koedam – 1st Place, Mesa Patterson – 2nd Place, and Jakob DeVos – 3rd Place. Alta-Aurelia’s winners were Brody Bush – 1st place, Olivia Weathers – 2nd place, and Sophia French – 3rd place. From River Valley the winners were Easton Hansen – 1st place, Karissa Gotto – 2nd place, and Bella Schronrock – 3rd place. MMCRU’s winners were Preston Busch – 1st place, Peyten Kamphoff – 2nd place, and Emma Barinsky – 3rd place.
Kenzie Koedam was chosen as the overall winner for Cherokee County and her poster will be sent to the Conservation Districts of Iowa Regional Director for the regional competition.
All the participating students’ posters can be viewed at the Sanford Museum during the month of June.