Friday, May 7, 2004

Coweta 4-H officers visit with Bush Coweta County 4-H officers Phillip Kaufman, Cody Disque, Rebecca Miolen, Cameron Brinton and Dane Beatenbough traveled to the White House to meet the president. They accepted the President’s Environmental Youth Awards plaque on behalf of the other Coweta 4-H members. “It was unbelievable to stand in front of the president and to know that our projects are making a difference and impact on our community,” Disque said. Disque and Beatenbough developed the Adopt-A-Stream project four years ago to clean and nurture area waterways. They attended Georgia Department of Natural Resources Adopt-A-Stream seminars. They even became certified in biological and chemical monitoring. The 4-H’ers found many area streams in poor condition. They began recruiting others to help clean the polluted streams, writing newspaper articles, speaking to civic groups and distributing fliers. “The teens’ main goals of this project are to educate youth (and) the public and form a plan and take action in the community to help our environment," said Pat Miolen, a 4-H program assistant in Coweta County. Local businesses contributed to the project. Yamaha provided the monitoring equipment, too, and helped pay for the Washington trip. While some 4-H’ers were testing the waters, others taught water pollution classes to more than 1,500 fifthgraders in local schools. The 4-H’ers organized and carried out four annual Rivers Alive cleanup efforts and two Great American Cleanups. “It was such a great experience and honor to be invited to the White House,” Brinton said. “The president encouraged everyone there to keep up their good work.” “You’ve cleaned parks, you’ve restored wetlands and you’ve organized conservation projects,” Bush said. “As volunteers, you’ve given your time and talents in many different ways. And together you’re helping to achieve a great national goal: to protect and pass along the great natural beauty of our country.”

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