In Celebration Of National Park Service’s Centennial Anniversary – SRHA & MCCC Partner To Host Nationally Touring Art Quilt Exhibit W/Opening Reception Oct. 5

Wings of Fire by Melani K. Brewer

Pottstown, PA—Montgomery County Community College (MCCC) and the Schuylkill River Heritage Area (SRHA) will present a traveling juried art quilt exhibit, “Piecing Together a Changing Planet,” which illustrates how pollution and climate change have affected national parks.

The 26-quilt exhibit has been on display at national parks and partner venues since 2014 and is continuing its journey across the country in celebration of the National Park Service’s Centennial Anniversary this year. Since the exhibit started, it has been seen by nearly a quarter-million people, according to Gary Bremen, a park ranger who helped to coordinate the exhibit.

The exhibit will be held at at MCCC’s Fine Arts Gallery, North Hall, 16 High Street, Pottstown, from Oct. 3 through 28 with an opening reception on Wednesday, October 5, 5-7 p.m. Both the exhibit and the reception are free and open to the community—everyone is welcome.

The Last Resort by Mary Rhopa la Cierra

The quilted artwork was created by Florida members of the Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA), a 3,000-member international organization dedicated to the promotion of art quilt. In addition to traditional stitching and piecing, this type of quilting features graphic design and layering of pieces of fabric, creating a dramatic, three-dimensional effect. As a result, butterflies appear to flutter from treetops, while glaciers seem to melt into oceans.

According to exhibit curator Maya Schonenberger, “The artists’ goal is to help open people’s eyes to the beauty of nature that surrounds them, and share their concern for its loss.”

Over the years, climate changes, particularly the warming of the atmosphere, has created many changes in the environment, which are often evident in America’s national parks.

“Stories of how artists have played a crucial role in environmental protection are legion,” said Bremen. “The arts convey beauty, fragility and urgency in ways that touch the heart and soul, thus opening the mind as well.”

Last Leaf by Linda S. Hoffmeister

The national tour of Piecing Together a Changing Planet is made possible by SAQA and Biscayne National Park, with financial support from the National Park Service’s Climate Change Response Program, the South Florida National Parks Trust, Les Bouquinistes Book Club and an anonymous donor.

For more information about the Schuylkill River Heritage Association, visit http://www.schuylkillriver.org/.

The Fine Arts Gallery is open Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. and Friday, 8;30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed weekends. For more information about MCCC, visit http://www.mc3.edu.

Rabid Beaver Bites Swimmer At Delaware Water Gap

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Pike County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note:  Yikes!

A swimmer in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was bitten by a beaver that tested positive for rabies, the National Park Service said Friday.

The park visitor was swimming in the Delaware River, just south of the Eshback Access, on Thursday afternoon when the beaver bit, Recreation Area Superintendent John J. Donahue said.

Donahue said he did not know whether other animals in the park had rabies, which is transmitted by the bites of infected animals.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-c-delaware-water-gap-rabies-beaver-bite-20120804,0,2954727.story

Controlled Deer Kill To Be Conducted At Gettysburg Battlefield

Image via Wikipedia

A controlled hunt will be conducted in the next six months by the Park Service staff at Gettysburg Battlefield and the Eisenhower National Historic Site to thin the deer herd by about 150 animals.  The population spiked recently to 80 animals per square mile.  The goal is 25 animals per square mile.

The hunt will be conducted at night and in areas closed to the public.  The venison will be donated to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank in Harrisburg.  A portion of that will return to Adams County.  Last year 17,000 pounds of venison was donated to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank.

An overabundance in the deer population can prevent forest regeneration and stress the ecosystem.  They cause damage to private property, farms, fields and can interfere with overall park management.

Federal Judge Clears Way For Hotly Contested Valley Forge Park Deer-Kill

A federal judge has cleared the way for Valley Forge National Park to begin “thinning” the deer herd from 1,200 to about 200 animals.  Annual shoots will begin in November and end in March.  They hope to reduce the herd by 500 animals the first year.

For the entire story from the Philadelphia Inquirer, click here:

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/breaking/news_breaking/20101027_Stop_Valley_Forge_deer_kill__judge_asked.html