By: Lydia Crawley, The Parsons Advocate
The Tucker County Commission approved a $2,500 funding request by the WVU Extension Service towards a portable bathroom for this year’s 4-H Camp and a $1,000 request for a pop-up market for Tucker County children. Jesica Streets of the WVU Extension Office presented an update and funding request to the Commission on April 8th.
“The funding we’re asking for is for the Kid’s Market at the Store,” Streets said. “This will be the third year that we have done it.”
The program is located at the St. George Medical Clinic in Parsons and Mountaintop Library in Thomas, according to Streets. There is a registration and sign up where participating children receive tokens. Last year, each child received $30 in tokens and could spend $10 or 10 tokens each week for three weeks shopping for their own produce. The program works with local producers and Spring Valley in Romney.
“They go in, they get to try different things, they’re more apt to try different things because they get to pick it out,” Streets said.
The portable bathroom and shower will be placed at Camp Kidd during this year’s 4-H Camp to accommodate teenage girls after dark in overflow sleeping areas so that they will not need to cross the road at night in order to get to the shower and toilet facilities, Streets said. The same arrangement was paid for by the Commission last year and worked out exceedingly well, Streets said.
Streets said that the Extension Office offers many other services to the County. She said that the office has been making an impact in Tucker Valley and Davis Thomas Elementary Middle Schools. The programs offered focus more towards the elementary and middle schools, rather than the high school, Streets said, due to the high school having more resources, such as the vocational programs, available.
The office also works with producers and farmers, as well, Streets said. There have been calls coming in from Canaan Valley and the Highway 72 area with interest as to how to revitalize farms.
“Which is always exciting to hear that people are taking farmland back, making it more manageable and more of a profitable operation,” Streets said.
Gardeners can also have their soil tested by the office to see what nutrients are needed to fortify the soil for this year’s gardening season. Streets said that there will also a notice in the paper in the coming weeks for those interested in having their canners tested. Streets also said that the Farmer’s Market is scheduled to start the beginning of July.
Tucker County Commission President Mike Rosenau commended Streets for the office’s “Cooking Around the World” program, which is held at each school. The program just completed its fifth year of introducing students to cuisine from around the globe.
“To me, it gives the kids an opportunity to see what the foods are like in the various parts of the world,” Rosenau said. “Its a great thing. This may be the only opportunity some of these kids may have in their lifetime to experience Thai food, Japanese food, Italian food. I think its a wonderful thing.”
Streets said that the Extension would not be able to extend these programs without collaboration with entities such as the Tucker County Commission, Family Resource Network, Parents As Teachers and all the other civic organizations that help fund their operations.
“Extension is not a money maker or a money provider,” Streets said. “We’re just education.”
Tucker County Commission President Mike Rosenau made a motion to approve the $2,500 funding for the Extension Office towards the portable bathroom. The motion was approved unanimously by the three man board. In a separate motion by Rosenau, the Commission approved $1,000 in funding for the pop-up market.
