As the second week of our fellowship comes to a close, I am feeling grateful to have a position that allows me to spend time outside and with passionate volunteers. Now that my responsibilities and projects are laid out for the summer, I feel like I have a purpose within FLOW and feel confident with my contributions.

Something that was helpful to me this week was getting a tour of the watershed and project locations. Now, when I hear people discussing locations for events or issues, I can connect the name to the project. On the tour, I saw pollinator gardens, in-progress bridges, areas restored with native plants, and more. Although I am excited about my other projects this summer, it would be fun to spend all day out at these sites.

The most exciting part of this week was attending my first clean-up event! Located at Sawmill Wetlands, we focused on pulling invasive species to allow native plants to successfully grow. Specifically, we pulled any Curly Dock, Yellow Sweet Clover, and Butterweed we saw. However, Butterweed is a native plant, but often too aggressive to allow other plants to thrive. After finishing that, we focused on watering the young trees that were planted this spring. Since the weather had been hot and dry, the trees needed water to survive. I was extremely excited to see FLOW in action and doing what they love.

When I wasn’t out at project sites this week, I was working on various projects in the office. In February, FLOW was able to get drone footage of the river and surrounding areas. I reviewed, sorted, and labeled the footage. It was interesting to see the contrast between the nature around the river and the sprawl of the urban areas. This footage could be great for a future project discussing the importance of maintaining the health of the Olentangy River.

Next week, I am looking forward to diving into some bigger projects. I was able to attend an Education and Outreach Committee meeting this week, and I will have a Fundraising Committee meeting this week. I’m excited to meet even more members of FLOW and discuss the organization’s future. Talk to you next week! -Shelly