FOR Board, Fundraising

New Projects in the Works for FOR

Greetings from the FOR Board Retreat!

FOR Board Retreat Collage

On Saturday, June 20th, all active members of the FOR board met at the Battelle Darby Creek Nature Center to brainstorm ideas for the next few years. With the help of the incomparable Kim Stanz, the board developed new ideas for ravine stewardship, fundraising, and membership rewards. Keep an eye out for news about the following projects over the next few months:

  • New & Improved Membership Benefits
  • A Revised Website with Updated Content
  • Calls to Action for Ravine & Neighborhood Advocacy
  • Increased Fundraising Efforts – and Opportunities to Give
  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Exciting New Community Partnerships
  • Compact & Accessible Stewardship Information
  • A Map of Central Ohio Ravines

In the meantime, “Like” us on Facebook or contact us at friendsoftheravines (at) gmail (dot) com to learn more. You can also pick up a current issue of Ravinia at the Whetstone Library, Lucky’s Market, Weiland’s Market, and other Central Ohio locations.

In the News, Thanks

FOR Honored by Columbus Landmarks Foundation with Henry Hunker Urban Legacy Award

FOR Board Members Sherrill Massey (L) and Martha Buckalew (R) with Columbus Landmarks’ Executive Director, Ed Lentz.

Board members Sherrill Massey and Martha Buckalew attended the 2015 Annual Meeting & Preservation Awards ceremony to receive the Henry Hunker Urban Legacy Award from Columbus Landmarks Foundation. The Henry Hunker Urban Legacy Award was presented to Friends of the Ravines “for their work to protect, preserve and restore the Ravines of Columbus.”

Henry Louis Hunker (1924 – 2009) was a distinguished geographer, educator, and writer whose reputation and contributions to Ohio, especially Columbus, attracted many to his classes at The Ohio State University. Henry was a leader in the Association of American Geographers (AAG) and a founding member of the Columbus Landmarks Foundation.   His book, Columbus, Ohio: A Personal Geography, vividly expresses his commitment to and understanding of the value of historic preservation.

 

Wildflowers

A Lovely Day for an FOR Spring Wildflower Walk

On Sunday, April 12th, spring plant enthusiasts gathered at the John Beltz Retreat Center to do some wildflower spotting. Led by Michael Graziano, a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University, and Carrie Morrow, Assistant Resource Manager at the Columbus & Franklin County Metro Parks, board member on the Ohio Invasive Plants Council Board, and Chair of the Board for Friends of the Ravines, participants found Spring Beauty, Dutchman’s Breeches, Trillium, as well as a number of other lovely specimens.

FOR would like to thank everyone who participated, our gracious guides, and FOR Board Member Sherrill Massey for the following photographs.

Michael Graziano with Spring Wildflower Walk participants.
Michael Graziano with Spring Wildflower Walk participants.

 

Explaining the origin of the name "Dutchman's Breeches."
Explaining the origin of the name “Dutchman’s Breeches.”

 

Spring Beauty.
Spring Beauty.

 

Trillium.
Trillium.
Uncategorized

Ask City Council to Adopt a Ravine Protection Ordinance

Join Friends of the Ravines in collecting signatures to present to Columbus City Council in support of a Ravine Protection Ordinance. You can email us at friendsoftheravines @ gmail.com to show your support, or download the PDF form and gather signatures to add to our collection.

Columbus ravines have taken a beating lately. One disappeared forever. Let’s urge city council to make ravine protection a priority.

Ravine Protection Petition

Uncategorized

Bill Moose Ravine Unexpectedly Destroyed

Part of Bill Moose Ravine in Clintonville, at 5132 N. High Street, was destroyed to make way for a Raising Canes fast food restaurant.

FLOW learned about the situation from a community member just a few days ago (7/23/14), and by then it was too late to try to do anything to protect the ravine from being destroyed.

We are not sure if FLOW, or the community, could have done anything to protect the ravine, but we will never know. This is a significant loss of green space, wildlife habitat, and storm water protection for our community.

Below are some pictures of the site taken today, Sunday 7/27/14. The pictures do not even come close to showing the scale of destruction to the ravine. The ravine slope in the pictures below appears very small, it is actually about 40 ‘feet’ high and hundreds of feet long.

Bill-Moose-1-300x225

(above pic) – Ravine slope is about 40 feet high. The tree stumps were old growth trees that were 2-3 feet in diameter.

Bill-Moose-2-300x225

(Above pic) – Graceland Bob Evan’s in the background. The picture makes the ravine slope look small, the slope is actually about 40 feet high, it’s a significant loss of wildlife habitat, green space, and storm water run off protection for our community.

Bill-Moose-3-300x225

(Above Pic) – Many old growth trees were destroyed. These trees provided habitat for wildlife and helped prevent storm water runoff. The scale of these pictures makes the trees look small. These trees were about 2-3 feet in diameter, and some of the trees were about 3-5 feet in diameter.

Bill-Moose-4-300x225

The slope in the above picture is about 40 feet high – all trees, shrubs, plants, and habitat have been destroyed. The broken tree stump in the background was roughly a 5 feet diameter old growth tree.

An Advocate for Community Resources