Girls on the Run to hold Confidence Building Programs

girls on the Run of Worcester County will hold its program at over forty sites this Spring season and is currently seeking coaches for their sites at Uxbridge and Northbridge schools. girls on the Run is a physical activitybased, positive youth development program that uses fun running games and dynamic discussions to teach life skills to girls in 3rd to 8th grade. During the ten-week program, girls participate in lessons that foster confidence, build peer connections and encourage community service while they prepare for an end-of-season celebratory 5K event. In order for the program to run at Uxbridge sites Taft Early Learning Center and Whitin Intermediate school, girls on the Run is seeking additional coaches. Northbridge Elementary School is also seeking coaches in order to bring the life-changing curriculum to girls in the area. Each team requires at least two coaches to run the program. New coaches for the program are required to attend an in-person training session, to be held in March, to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary to lead a team of girls.

Jennifer Bolt, a coach with girls on the Run throughout Fall 2022, stated that her school “saw girls develop new friendships - both in the program and around school,” as well as “demonstrate great pride and excitement in knowing that they can run a 5K.” girl participants can sign up for any site across Worcester County, regardless of its status.

Participants will not be charged the registration fee unless and until their site has two trained coaches confirmed for the season, and will be notified if their site will not be facilitating the program for this Spring season. Amongst over forty sites to run this Spring season, the Whitin Community Center (WCC) is confirmed to run with a start date of March 29th. Participants will meet every Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:30 pm and every Saturday from 9 to 10:30 am for a total of ten weeks. All girls in grades 3 to 5 of any athletic ability are welcome to participate, and the Spring 5K will be held at Polar Park on June 10th.

Program registration is $175 and covers the program facilitated by trained coaches, a journal, a water bottle, a tshirt, the girls’ 5K registration fee, and a 5K medal. Financial assistance is available. FMI visit: www.gotr-worc. org.

On February 16th the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council (BVTC) dropped a gPS trackable object into the Blackstone River’s headwaters in Worcester. This object is called River Scout One, and is neon pink in color. River Scout One contains a waterproof gPS tracker, protective foam, and our River Scout mascot, Scuba Duck. River Scout One is the first of many capsule experiments BVTC will be conducting over the course of the year.

The Blackstone River is one of the most powerful rivers in the United States. It is 46 miles long and drops 438 feet from its headwaters in Worcester, all the way down to Narragansett Bay. Due to the heavy use of the river during the Industrial Revolution, the Blackstone River is still to this day the number one polluter of Narragansett Bay. Therefore, it becomes important that we discover how long it takes an object to get from the start of the Blackstone River to the end. This will make it easier for us to predict how different pollutants move in the river. We invite everyone to track River Scout One for themselves at rivertourblackstone.com/ site/river-scout-capsule.

If you wish to learn even more about the river, come join us aboard our Explorer River Tours, which are avail- able for school field trips, after school programs, and public tours on the weekends. You can also make a reservation to bring your class to our new River Classroom located at Central Falls Landing, and use our state-of-theart binoculars, microscopes and weather technology. Any questions or comments about the River Scout or classroom programs can be directed to the Director of River Education, Samantha Jackson. She can be reached at bvtcriverprograms@gmail.com or at 401724-2200 ext. 217.

Conservation District announces Plant & Seedling Sale March 24th

The Worcester County Conservation District (WCCD) is once again offering trees, shrubs, and flowering perennials for sale to gardeners and landowners. The annual sale is a spring tradition going back fifty years. Orders may be placed online or by phone from now until March 24, and will be available for pickup on Saturday, May 6th. There are six pickup locations throughout Worcester County.

The offerings include mainly native trees, shrubs, and flowering perennials, but also fruit trees, asparagus, blueberries, ferns, and more. The selection changes each year.

The plant sale is a fundraiser for the district, which assists landowners, foresters, and farmers with water quality, soil health, forest, and farm management.

To shop for plants and learn more about the District’s educational offerings, visit their website, www.worcesterconservation.org.

Founded in the 1940’s, Worcester County Conservation District (WCCD) is run by a board of local volunteers with a commitment to conservation in our home community.