Nature Club Aims to Educate and Give Back to Community

EDWARDSVILLE - A group of eight 4th grade girls that attend St. Mary’s School have been busy working on a “Nature Club” everyday at recess. The girls came up with the idea because they all share a love for being outside, helping animals, and observing how plants, trees, seeds and grass grow. The girls have been working hard to organize, plan, and come up with fun ways to make money for their club so they can use the money to support community organizations that support nature.

All their hard work came to fruition this weekend when they hosted their first check presentation at Metro East Humane Society. They were able to donate $50 to the organization. They were excited to learn that with the $50, MEHS will be able to help four dogs. Katie from Metro East Humane Society expressed her appreciation to the girls. Katie said, “Thank you for stopping by and for supporting MEHS! We loved having you out and sharing our love for animals and the environment with you.”

The girls were able to donate the $50 to MEHS by using some of their sponsorship money. The girls reached out to local businesses to ask for support. The first sponsorship they received was from Dr. Moody with Edwardsville Family Dentist. His daughter, Gianna, is a member of the club. When the girls asked Dr. Moody for his support he said yes immediately. Dr. Moody explains, “This was an easy decision for me. I share a love for animals and nature and seeing my daughter along with her friends put this club together all on their own made me incredibly proud. It was the least I could do.” The girls also used another portion of the sponsorship money to book a planting class. They still have over half of their sponsorship money left and will continue meeting during recess to decide their next move. Club member Leah Saltsgaver explained, “We picked Metro East Humane Society because of all the hard work they put into helping animals. Our club loves animals and we are grateful for all they do.” Leah continued, “We have enough money to support 2 or 3 more organizations and we will continue to meet at recess to discuss and vote on who we will support next.”

The club is not just about raising money. They want to learn too! After the check presentation at MEHS, the girls attended their first educational event at SoCal Soul Plant and Gifts. They were very excited when Jamie Shrum with SoCal Soul offered to sponsor them as well. Jamie explained, “When they reached out about doing a private propagation class it was a quick yes, who wouldn't want to be a part of this cool club? Watching the next generation get excited about nature and plants emits positive energy and good vibes for miles.” Jamie continued, “The girls asked great questions and were genuinely interested in the process as we potted Tradescantia Zebrina cuttings with new roots and took fresh cuttings from some sacrificial snake plants and pothos.” Club member Aubrey Dockstader said, “I enjoyed the class and loved shopping for plant accessories after. They have an awesome store. I was able to get several planters for the new plants we were bringing home. Each of us are hoping to use our new roots and fresh cuttings to create new plants that we can hopefully sell to make money for our club.”

The girls felt like a true club when they received their matching shirts from Big Frog Custom T-Shirts. Club member Lydia Peterson explained, “When we each got our shirts, it made us feel really official. I love the color and the design and it was cool to wear them to our check presentation and class.” The shirts were donated by Kris Duhachek with Big Frog Custom T-shirts and More. Kris is also a sponsor and the club was so grateful for his support. Club member, M.K. said, “We are incredibly grateful to each of our sponsors and we were so surprised at how generous each business was. It made us feel really special.”

The girls have spent their recesses observing ants, planting seeds, making plans, and sharing friendship. When the girls came to their moms about wanting to actually take their club to the next level, every mom was on board. Katie Dockstader explained, ‘I had no idea they were spending a lot of their recesses doing these meetings. I was happy to support their ideas and it was so fun to watch their ideas come to life this past weekend.” Katie, her mom Charlotte, and other daughter Addyson watched their daughter Aubrey with pride at the check presentation and class.

This is just the beginning for the club as they are filled with many more ideas. Club member Gianna Moody explains, “We hope to sell our plants, custom plant jewelry, and other goods at the Farmer’s Market or after church. We are working with our moms to see if they can help us make our ideas happen. We are self-run but also I am only 9 years old, so sometimes I have to ask for help.” Club member Lydia Peterson continues, we hope to plant a tree at our school so we can watch it grow and share our love for nature with the other grades at our school. We are working on writing a plan to present to our Principal about the tree.” The girls have lots of plans and ideas in the works. The girls hope to raise money but also continue their education throughout the summer.

The girls were incredibly excited when Kristen Fries with the Edwardsville Children's Museum offered to sponsor the girls. Kristen’s daughter Avery is in the club. Avery Fries explains, “My mom is working on some awesome hands-on education for us at ECM! All of us love to get our hands dirty and really love being outside. Some of the ideas my mom and I are working on are volunteering to help in the Discovery Garden at the museum, learning about and working with bees, participating in nature walks and scavenger hunts and working with clay you find outside.”

When asked what inspired the girls to create a club that gives back to the community, club member Caroline Fries explained, “We see our moms volunteering at our school often and they are really good at raising money for our school. We wanted to be like them and help our community too. We see them working hard while having fun and we knew we could do that too. Club member Gianna Moody continues, “I was inspired by my mom and also St. Francis of Assisi. I learned about St. Francis when I was making my 1st Communion and picked him as my Saint. He had a love for every living thing and I do too– we all do. St. Francis was a man of action and loved all animals. Our Club strives to be like him.”

If you would like to follow the girls journey please check out their Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61574073476532. If you would like to donate to their club the girls are accepting donations via venmo at @Elizabeth-Moody-75875 . If your business would like to sponsor the club please reach out to emoodyauction@gmail.com. Please note that the club is not a 501c (although they hope to someday be one) and the club is not a school sponsored organization (although they hope it will grow to be one.)