WS Chronicle

By Judie Holcomb-Pack

Mother Nature cooperated with Mother Earth last Saturday to offer a beautiful spring day that brought out more than 8,500 visitors from across the region to celebrate Piedmont Environmental Alliance (PEA) Earth Day 2024, the largest celebration in North Carolina. 

Cornelia Barr, PEA development associate, said that “120 vendors were super engaged in educating, entertaining, and leading community action.” She also noted the variety in vendors: “They included conservation nonprofits like Sierra Club and Gateway Nature Preserve; corporations like Vulcan Materials and Siemens Energy that incorporate sustainability in their business models; the NC Clean Energy Technology Center and solar energy companies; electric vehicle manufacturers like Volvo trucks and Matthews Specialty Vehicles, as well as dealers that sell electric vehicles and install home charging stations; and city and county government agencies – WS/FC Stormwater, Triad Air Awareness, and others – that work to ensure that our air and drinking water are clean and safe. As always, we are grateful to the City of Winston-Salem, a major sponsor of the event.”

PEA also held a student environmental art contest with work that showed how much students – from kindergarten to high school – care about our planet. In the high school debate final competition, Parkland High School and North Davidson vied for the tournament championship by debating the topic, “Should cars be banned from Triad downtown areas?” North Davidson was the winner. 

An event of this magnitude depends on volunteers and over 150 dedicated volunteers made the event run smoothly  

And what would a fair be without food! Brasstown Chocolate, a local chocolatier, was there, along with Café Gelato’s cart serving up their specialty gelato, a lemonade and popcorn booth, Foothills Brewing beer tent, food trucks, and a water station to refill your water bottles. And for your musical pleasure, there were two music areas with artists rotating all during the day.

This was the first year that The Chronicle has been a media sponsor of the Earth Day Fair and staff and volunteers had a great time helping kids make biodegradable seed pots from newspaper (old issues, of course!). We helped 98 kids make seed pots to take home and plant in their gardens after the seeds sprout, in about six to eight weeks. Our theme was Read (The Chronicle). Recycle (share your issue with a neighbor) and Repurpose (use old newspapers to make crafts). When the seeds sprout, the entire pot can be planted in the garden and the newspaper will degrade into compost.

David Winship, a volunteer who is a retired elementary school educator, said, “Youngsters were enthused and excited about making their own pots and planting a seed, particularly watering the seed with a spray bottle!” He noted, “Several students had gardens at home, one even had a pumpkin patch to which his plant would be added.”

At the end of the day, Barr remarked, “The feedback from our exit survey was overwhelmingly positive. People left feeling more connected to the community, engaged in PEA’s work, and ready to take action to protect the environment.”

Jamie Maier, executive director of PEA, added, “At the Earth Day Fair, people truly came together from across the community to celebrate this beautiful earth we inhabit, and to learn how we can do our part to protect it. It was the best fair ever, and we are looking forward to the 20th celebration next year!”

For more information on Piedmont Environmental Alliance, visit www.peanc.org.