[Bristol-Birds] 28 BBCmembers meet Elizabeth Oakley, appoint conservation chair

Twenty-eight members of the Bristol Bird Club were on hand for 
the club's July 21 meeting at the Bristol Public Library. Ten were
on hand for dinner at the Mad
Greek Restaurant.  It was an
evening when the management
tuned the TV above our reserved
table to WCYB-TV5 where we
saw the 6 p.m. news feature
about 8-year-old Elizabeth Oakley,
who has won a place in our hearts,
having discovered the rare
White Ibis in here yard.  It came
on the heels of attending a BBC/
Bristol Public Library children's
summer program on bird study and birdwatching.  It was conducted
by BBC member Michele Sparks, a fifth-grade teacher in the 
Sullivan County School System and the "2008 Region Birder of the
Year."   

Above, Elizabeth is introduced to club members when she attended
tonight's BBC meeting and was awarded the "Bristol Bird Club
Dr. Lee R. Herndon Mentor Award" which was in the form of her
own, new, copy of Charles Sibley's eastern bird field guide.  She
was accompanied to the meeting by her mother, Ann Oakley.

With a unanimous vote of approval, the BBC members decided to
create a conservation committee to be chaired by Ron Harrington with 
members appointed later. As planned, it would be known as the
"BBC Conservation Policy Committee." The vote came
on a motion by former president Bill Grigsby and a second by 
former president Larry McDaniel.  

Ron will represent the BBC and the 200-member Overmountain 
Trout Unlimited Chapter out of Johnson City at the semi-annual 
TVA Coldwater meeting in Knoxville, July 25. That same day he 
will also make a presentation to both the TVA meeting and the 
Tennessee Council, Trout Unlimited.   Ron has been asked to 
present a summary of the Shady Valley watershed issues to
the state council and also to the TVA meeting. There are usually 
folks from other TU chapters, TDEC, TU National, TWRA, 
TVA, GSMNP, and the U.S. Forest Service in attendance.

President Lisa Tyler announced plans for a 30-year celebration
of the Bristol Bird Club's involvement with The Nature Conservancy
in Shady Valley, dating to the Aug 1979 creation of the cranberry
bog now managed by ETSU.  She said there would be public
field trips held from 8 a.m. to 12 noon and again at 5 p.m. at the
TNC preservers.  The event will be held Saturday, Aug 8th and
the main station will be at the sandstone house in Orchard Bog.

Rees Shearer announced a literary event for the upcoming
Virginia Highlands Festival which will feature a A Panel on Publishing
"Publishing: Voices of Experience" by by Carl Clarke (moderator), 
Lida Quillen, and Kathy Shearer (morning and afternoon) and will 
discuss the fundamentals of self-publishing.   The fee for the day
(Mon, July 27) is $25. Attendees may register in advance, or they 
can register at the door on the day of the event. For detailed 
information on the day's events, contact Phil Ferguson 
(276-628-3309).

Richard Kretz of the Russell County Bird Club presented an excellent
PowerPoint program of his photos and the natural history of the
Pinnacles Natural Area Preserve and the Clinch Valley Bioreserve
on Big Cedar Creek, a tributary of the Clinch River in Russell County.
His photography was gorgeous and his talk carefully organized and
presented.

Attended the meeting were:  Pamela Wilson, Michele Villenenue,
Aubrie Abernethy, John Hay, Elizabeth Oakley, Michele Sparks,
Ann Oakley, Mary Erwin, Larry McDaniel, Joseph Kun, Earlene Kun,
Roy Knispel, Charles Powell, Wilma Boy, Lois Ann Cox, Judy Roach,
Bill Grigsby, Rick Knight, Wallace Coffey, Carolyn Coffey, Doug Ogle,
Key Ogle, Kathy Shearer, Reese Shearer, Richard Kretz, Ruth Clark
and Mary Clark.

Let's go birding . . . .

Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN

JPEG image

Other related posts: