1st Tuesday Program: “The Family Farm Ecosystem”
Tuesday, July 7th, 7:00 – 8:30pm at Crown S Ranch

Come along for a show-and-tell of traditional animal husbandry, pasture management and local food production at Crown S Ranch, which was protected with a Methow Conservancy conservation easement earlier this year.  Crown S Ranch raises grass-fed, organic cattle, pigs, laying hens, chickens, and turkeys by traditional pasture rotation methods.  Take a free tour of this amazing local farm and hear first-hand farming stories from Louis Sukovaty and Jennifer Argraves. 

Crown S Ranch is located at 1 Twin Lakes Rd, on the corner of Hwy 20, across from the schools.  Some parking is available at Crown S and along their drive.  Attendees can also park at the school and walk across the road to Crown S Ranch.

The event is free and open to everyone.  Contact Mary at 996-2870 or  info@methowconservancy.org if you have questions.

Imagine the Methow ~ The Campaign for Conservation
The Imagine the Methow Community Campaign is off and running!  We have already secured 229 gifts toward our goal of 1000 donors by our September 26th Cider Squeeze.  771 to go!

The Imagine the Methow Campaign is the Methow Conservancy’s capital campaign, raising $20 million in public and private funds as well as the value of donated conservation easements to protect the best wildlife habitat, farmland, and scenic views in the Methow Valley forever.

In June we hosted our first two neighborhood gatherings, bringing together neighbors in Twisp and then in the West Chewuch/Rendezvous area.  We’ve had a ton of fun watching neighbors meet each other and seeing neighborhoods express their commitment to protecting the future of this special Valley. 

Be sure to check out our special campaign website at www.imaginethemethow.org.  We’re keeping it updated with progress toward our goal of 1000 donors and we’re posting the latest information on our upcoming campaign events. In addition, we have a special place for you to share your story and tell us what you wish for the future of the Methow Valley.  We’re hoping to collect these “I imagine a Methow where” stories throughout the summer and share them on the site for all to read.  We would love to hear from you!

This campaign comes at a critical time for the Methow Valley.  Like so many beautiful rural valleys that have been “discovered” across the West, increased development pressures threaten to break up working farms, ranches and wildlife habitat forever.  Even in the current economy, the pressures on the Methow Valley remain.  Right now, before farms are lost and critical habitat areas are developed, we have an unprecedented opportunity.

We hope you will join us this summer in learning more about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do something extraordinary for the future of a place we all love.  Thank you to all of you who have already made a difference!

Conservation Fair
Saturday July 11th, 9:00am -12 noon in the Twisp Commons during the Farmers’ Market
 
Join the Methow Conservancy in the Twisp Commons on July 11th for fun, interactive and kid-friendly activities and booths on wildlife, plants, rivers, land stewardship and much more.  Get lots of helpful information for land stewardship and conservation.  Come anytime during the Farmer's Market for as little or as long as you'd like. 

The event is free and open to everyone.  For more information, contact Mary at 996-2870 or info@methowconservancy.org.

Vic and Carrie Stokes Join Methow Conservancy Board of Directors
The Stokes family has made their home in the MethowValley for 5 generations, and has cared for their land and family farm on upper Beaver Creek in Twisp for over 80 years.  Full-time ranchers, Vic and Carrie Stokes are now also taking time and energy to serve on the Board of the Methow Conservancy.  In 2005, the Stokes family worked with the Methow Conservancy to place a conservation easement on more than 350 acres of their property.  The Stokes’ ranch was the first in Eastern Washington to be protected under the federal Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program.  Also in 2005, Vic and Carrie were named Wildlife Farmer of the Year by the Washington Association of Conservation Districts, Washington State Conservation Commission, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).  The Stokes’ have gone to great lengths to implement conservation practices and manage their land and waterways to create additional habitat, enhance and protect existing habitat, and encourage co-existence with wildlife.  Vic and Carrie have provided a lot guidance and support to the Methow Conservancy over the years.  The Conservancy is grateful and excited that both of them have agreed to serve on our Board.

Art, Conservation and Young Minds
This past May, Methow Valley Elementary School sixth graders celebrated what they love about the Methow Valley and explored the meaning of place with local poet Linda Robertson and local printmakers Laura Gunnip and Emily Post.  Students worked with Robertson to create rich, descriptive poetry reflecting their perception of the Methow Valley as “home.”  Gunnip and Post then guided each student in transforming an element of their poem into a colorful block print.

My Front Yard In my front yard there is clear blue sky and I hear the wind singing. it’s as peaceful as the sun rising on a Sunday morning. the wind goes by singing its lovely lullaby and I feel the lush green grass under my hands. ~ Alana Hardy	block print by Elise Putnam

This project was a part of the Methow Arts Artist in Residence Program and was sponsored by the Methow Conservancy’s Imagine the Methow Campaign.

Recordings were made of each child reading their poem, and these readings are now being aired once-a-day on local radio station KTRT at 97.5FM.  The beautiful block prints are being displayed throughout the Valley.  Look for them at the Mazama Store, the Rocking Horse Bakery, the Country Clinic, the Winthrop Post Office, Hank's Harvest Foods, Cinnamon Twisp Bakery and the Twisp River Pub. 

As a continuation of the Methow Conservancy’s partnership with Methow Arts this year, we are hosting a booth at the 22nd annual Methow Arts Fest.  Join us and just about everybody in the Valley on Saturday, July 4th from 11:30am - 4:30pm at the Twisp River Park for the 100-year birthday celebration of Twisp.  Enjoy a giant birthday cake, all-day entertainment on the stage, and hands-on art projects for kids of all ages.  Everyone is invited to make a wish for the next 100 years of Twisp on flags which will be strung up for the duration of the centennial celebrations.

Kids’ Nature Expeditions
July 15th, 10:00 – 11:30am
Get those kids outside!  Kids ages 6 and up are invited to join the Methow Conservancy for an on-the-ground exploration of Pearrygin Lake State Park, with games and environmental education.  Volunteers from the Methow Conservancy will lead the outing and teach cool, fascinating facts about plants and animals.  At least one parent must accompany the children they bring.  The program is free and no registration is necessary.  Enter through the main park entrance (the east entrance) and meet in the main parking lot near the water.

Restoring Native Habitat Around Your Home” Workshop Series
Our monthly restoration workshop series continues with a class on native seed collection on July 18th.  The series has been a big hit with both full and part-time landowners, providing them with hands-on experience in planning, designing and implementing native plant restoration and landscaping projects around their house.  Many people are attending individual classes, so come along anytime.  Classes will continue once a month through October, on a Saturday, from 9am to noon at Methow Natives.  Learn do-it-yourself, low-cost strategies to beautify your surroundings, attract birds and butterflies, and help native plants thrive.  For all the details, including a list of workshop dates and topics, and how to sign-up, click here.  

If you simply want a free copy of our “Restoring Shrub-Steppe in the Methow Valley” handbook, stop by the office or call or email to have us mail you one.  The handbook will help you learn to evaluate your site; create a good irrigation system; identify common weeds; develop a weed control strategy; choose appropriate native plants; sow seeds; identify deer resistant plants, and much, much more. 

New Members
Thank you to our new members who donated in the month of June!  Mary Shevlin & Hilal Al-Hilali, Kathy Brown-Graves, Al Dodson, Betty Donnerberg, Stota and Daulot Fountain, Els Zanzen Ende and Ken Gangloff, Jeanie and Dennis Garrity, Carole Goudge, Karen and Bruce Gustavson, Antoinette and Timothy Halloran, Michelle and Lance Jobe, Lisa Tall and Bent Kjos, Penny Lewis, Berit and Robert McAlister, Hanne Thiede and Steven Oien, Ann and Mark Osin, Christine Parsons, Erin and George Powell-Dilloo, Delmer Roe, James Roepke, Pamela Kulin and James Rogers, Grace and David Smith, Patricia and Stuart Spencer, Joanne and Stephen Syre, Janet Verkuyl, Reid Warner, Monica Romano and Bob Weller, Brent Wingett, and Jan Young and Jim Wurzer.   

Events
Below, you'll find announcements about events or publications (ours and those of other organizations) that we think you might find interesting.

July 3rd:  Mazama/Lost River Imagine the Methow Neighborhood Campaign Party, 5:30 at the Mazama Community Center.  Enjoy free pizza and beverages as well as music from Family Dog.  Everyone welcome! Click here for more info.

July 4th:  22nd Annual Methow Arts Festival, 11:30 – 4:30 at the Twisp River Park  Look for the Methow Conservancy’s “Blooming Painted Pots” booth!

July 6th:  “With Respect to Farming” film, 7:30pm at the Confluence Gallery in Twisp.  Terry Hunt’s film about sustainable growing in the Methow Valley.  DVD copies of the film can be purchased at www.pasaytenfilms.com.

July 7th:  Methow Conservancy “1st Tuesday” Program, “The Family Farm Ecosystem,” 7 – 8:30pm at Crown S Ranch. 

July 7th:  “With Respect to Farming” film, 7:30pm at Tappi in Twisp.  Terry Hunt’s film about sustainable growing in the Methow Valley.  DVD copies of the film can be purchased at www.pasaytenfilms.com.

July 11th:  Conservation Education Fair, 9am - 1pm, in the Twisp Commons. 

July 15th:  Nature Expeditions for kids ages 6 and up hosted by the Methow Conservancy at Pearrygin Lake State Park, 10 – 11:30am. Click here for more info.

July 18th: Wolf Creek / Pine Forest / Twin Lakes Neighborhood Imagine the Methow Campaign Party, 3:30pm at the home of Kate Jones (211 Twin Lakes Rd). Click here for more info.

July 19th:  Intensive Grazing & Livestock Layering Class at Crown S Ranch with the NRCS, 1 to 4pm.  Learn to fertilize and to control weeds and pests by traditional pasture rotation methods.  $15 per person.  Call Crown S Ranch to register or for more information at 996-3849.

August 5th:  Best of the West: A Summer Picnic to benefit the Methow Conservancy and the Shafer Historical Museum.  Contact Sarah at 996-2870 or sarah@methowconservancy.org for more details.

August 12th:  Methow Conservancy “1st Tuesday” Program, “Bound for the Methow:  A Pictorial History of the Methow Valley,” with Kit McLean-Cramer and Karen West, 7 - 8:30pm at the Shafer Historical Museum.

August 15th: South Valley Neighborhood Imagine the Methow Campaign Party

September 5th:  Greater Winthrop / Mid-Valley Neighborhood Imagine the Methow Campaign Party.

September 8th:  Methow Conservancy “1st Tuesday” Program (on the 2nd Tuesday!), “This is America,” a preview of the Ken Burn's National Parks film plus a North Cascades National Park update from Park Superintendent Chip Jenkins.  7:00 – 8:30 pm, location TBA. 

September 26th:  Annual Cider Squeeze and Social

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