Henry County Conservation expects a busy summer filled with camps, partnerships, and park improvements

MT. PLEASANT — Henry County Conservation is preparing for a summer packed with hands-on youth programming, collaborative projects and major park improvements — offering families and visitors a chance to connect with nature in new and exciting ways.

“We have a lot of programs coming up within the summer, if you will,” said Henry County Conservation Director Caleb Waters.

Several camps are already scheduled at Oakland Mills Park, including “Picnic in the Park: Animal Tracks” on June 13 and “Going on a Nature Hunt” on July 18, where kids will get the chance to explore local wildlife and habitats. A more in-depth program, “Day in the Life of a Naturalist,” is planned for June 20 for older children interested in environmental science. Later in the season, “Camp Oakland” will run July 22-24, giving participants a three-day outdoor adventure. These camps represent just a portion of the youth opportunities planned for the summer.

“We’re constantly looking for ways to engage kids and families,” Waters said. “For any of that info or anything regarding the park system, you can get on our Facebook page or My County Parks.”

In addition to programming, Henry County Conservation is partnering with the Mt. Pleasant Public Library to create a Story Walk at Oakland Mills Park — an outdoor trail featuring pages from a children’s book displayed along the path in weatherproof pedestals.

“I’ve been partnering with Mount Pleasant Public Library Director Kayleigh Septer,” Waters said during an update to the Henry County Board of Supervisors. “So, I guess they’ve approached the city about doing it, and they weren’t interested, so they came to the conservation board. So, we have a new trail system, and every couple of hundred feet, you’re going to have these story pages, and you can take your kids, your family, and go around as a self-guided hike, essentially, where they can read different things about nature, wildlife and conservation. So, that’s good partnership.”

Septer emphasized the benefits of the project during a separate update to the county Board of Supervisors.

“We are also partnering with Caleb, with Henry County Conservation, to provide a Story Walk for families down at Oakland,” she said. “If the library may not be open or it’s a nice day outside, parents and their kids can go down and read a story and walk along the trails. And that also promotes the county through the conservation.”

The project is estimated to cost just over $7,000.

“Luckily enough, [the library is] applying for grants to fund that project,” Waters said. “So really, the biggest thing for Dalton and I am to install the posts and the trail’s already there. So, pretty simple, easy project.”

Another significant development for the summer is the arrival of an AmeriCorps team, which will be housed at Oakland Mills Park for six to eight weeks to assist with various park projects. It marks the first time the county has officially been approved to host a team for that duration.

“At last, we’re really excited to announce that we have been approved for AmeriCorps team,” Waters said. “Last year, we had AmeriCorps team. It’s free to the county, my department. So last year we had about seven individuals from all over the nation that helped us with various projects. We got accepted. So, we’re actually going to have them for approximately two months, which is for us free labor to help us do a lot of projects around the park system that would take Dalton and I years to do.”

Waters said they’re expecting 10 to 12 individuals this year to assist with work on trails and campgrounds.

“That is a huge benefit to my staff,” he said.

The team will be staying in two of the park’s cabins during their time in Henry County.

“So we’re gonna, yeah, we’re gonna have them in two of our cabins for that month, two-month period. So that’s where they’ll be staying. So the other two cabins will be open to the public, but during that duration, they will be housed there,” Waters said.

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