Our Bay: This Week's Take: Gibson Island school: Synergy at work

Recently the Magothy River Association participated as one of 11 river organizations in the Marylanders Grow Oysters program.

Marylanders Grow Oysters was sponsored by the Department of Natural Resources and the Oyster Recovery Partnership.

More than 700 oyster cages were distributed on the Magothy River alone. These logistics were well beyond the talents of the lone association volunteer coordinator, so special thanks goes to Tim Decker of Gibson Island Country School, Brad Knopf of Cape St. Claire, Roger Feldman of Shore Acres and Mike Frye of Cypress Creek. Each coordinated a localized oyster pickup for their respective communities around the Magothy River.

Particularly interesting and fun were the pick-up activities at Gibson Island Country School. The school, an independent school with enrollment open to the public, houses pre-K through fifth-graders. Students are taught from day one that it is cool to be green.

Gibson Island Country School is a certified Green School, thanks to the efforts of science teacher Tim Decker and the school staff. With a green culture set by Head of School Laura Kang, hardly a decision is made without taking the environment into consideration.

Sitting right on the shores of the Magothy River, the views of the Gibson Island anchorage can only help to stimulate students and teachers alike to stay committed to their greenness.

So there I was on the day of the oyster-cage drop-off with all the students forming a bucket brigade to move 320 oyster cages from the truck to shallow water. Fourth- and fifth-graders donned chest waders and happily sloshed in the shallows helping to stack the cages temporarily until their gardener owners could pick them up.

Third-graders manned the pier and kept the cages flowing to waiting hands. And even the youngest pre-K students helped carry cages to the dock.

Mr. Decker had his troops well trained to be in and around the water. He actively has students on the river's edge year-round, observing the effects of the seasons, identifying flora and fauna, and seining for critters to study.

Over the past few years, Gibson Island Country School and the Magothy River Association have teamed up to grow underwater grass, monitor water quality, build reef balls, hold the first annual Magothy Watershed Conference, and now, to distribute and grow oysters.

The partnership makes sense from both sides - the school is reaching out to the community, while being a wonderful green partner for the association on the water's edge.

It is great to see the school so committed to the environment. Everything conceivable is recycled and each classroom has recycling bins. Even their fundraiser has a component of recycling.

Other green curriculum components include raising diamondback terrapins for release on Poplar Island, maintaining a nature trail along the water's edge, environmental field trips, their annual Bay Week, building and using a compost pile, and constructing nest boxes and an osprey platform. Each grade level takes ownership of one particular project.

To wrap up the oyster-cage distribution, Cub Scout Pack 441 mobilized to pick a dozen cages and drop them off to three families. While doing so, the scouts received a quick lesson about why oysters are good for the bay, where the cages and spat came from, how the oysters will be cared for and about the Magothy reef where the oysters will be placed next year.

In all the years I have been volunteering for environmental organizations, my fondest memories are when working with kids. They are sponges and ask a million questions. They quickly realize that little critters don't bite (at least not too hard) and that there really is a circle of life.

I've helped kids onto a boat for the first time and watched them hold a bay critter in their hand for the first time. Their eyes were as big as saucers.

For the Gibson Island school kids, every day is Earth Day. And let it be told that despite the troubles we have saving the bay today, the next generation of bay stewards is definitely in training.

Carl Treff is the communications and volunteer coordinator for the Magothy River Association. He can be reached at magothyriversavers@yahoo.com.