Carl Hutchison coordinated with the local utility company to host a Pollinator Habitat Outreach Program at a Liberty property in Joplin
Story and Photo by Kim Cole, Missouri Outreach Coordinator
The Spring River Chapter of Quail Forever and Liberty Utilities have been partnering on an exciting project to establish pollinator habitat under power lines in southwest Missouri! Carl Hutchison, the chapter president, coordinated with the local utility company to host a Pollinator Habitat Outreach Program at a Liberty property in Joplin and worked with teachers from George Washington Carver Elementary in Neosho to bring out all the second graders for an amazing day learning about pollinators and creating native habitat in their community.
Around 100 second graders attended the program, and it was wonderful to see so many kids having fun while they learned! Groups rotated through four different stations to learn about the importance of pollinators and their habitat, then the students helped seed a 1.7-acre plot with a high-diversity mix of over 30 different native wildflower and grass species.
Ethan Kleekamp, Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist II in Missouri, helped the Spring River Chapter and Liberty staff prepare the site for planting and provided guidance as they developed their plan to put native habitat on the ground. Ethan, along with Regional Representative Adam Cooper, also helped during the outreach event and taught the students about the importance of habitat for upland bird survival through an interactive predator-prey game.
This new pollinator plot is being established at a highly visible spot on a main road going through town, so as this habitat matures and shows off beautiful blooms, it will be enjoyed by not only the folks driving by but also by the many pollinators and other wildlife that will benefit from this new piece of native habitat.
Volunteers from the Spring River Chapter, Liberty Utilities and QF & PF in Missouri staff all helped make this a wonderfully successful event. Thank you to everyone who supported the Spring River Chapter’s Pollinator Habitat Outreach Program and to George Washington Carver Elementary School for bringing your students out to help the chapter create quality pollinator habitat in their community!
Kim Cole is an Outreach Coordinator in Missouri.
This story originally appeared in the 2022 Summer Issue of the Quail Forever Journal. If you enjoyed it and would like to be the first to read more great upland content like this, become a member today!