Local students made a big splash about protecting fish habitats in the Lakeland.
The Lakeland Industry and Community Association (LICA) and the Stream of Dreams Murals Society taught students at Duclos School about the significance of local lakes and rivers last week.
“It’s a program where we have an entire school do an educational portion to learn about the importance of water, how it connects to fish, and how it connects with our community,” LICA education outreach coordinator Erin Ritchie explained during a Stream of Dreams presentation on Oct. 16.
Students, staff, and faculty at Duclos School had the chance to paint a “Dreamfish” that will be featured on the school’s fence.
“It will be an art installation for the whole community to remind them the importance of water,” detailed Ritchie.
Duclos Grade 2 student Torran Keil enjoyed learning about the local watersheds, and the painting portion of the day.
“(My favourite part) was painting the fish because I really like art. It was super fun,” he expressed.
Executive director and co-founder of the Stream of Dreams Murals Society Louise Towell said the program was started as a way of stressing the importance of watersheds, after someone introduced a toxin to a local stream in her hometown of Burnaby, B.C. that killed all the fish.
“There was over 5,000 fish that perished. My daughter and I just thought it was horrendous that something like that would happen,” she detailed.
Schools and cities started to reach out to Towell to create their own murals, with over 500 fish scenes being featured across Canada.
“The only thing that has advertised this is the actual murals. People see them, remember them, and are dazzled by them,” Towell said.
LICA thought the initiative was the perfect way to educate students about the watersheds across the Lakeland, while leaving a lasting impression.
“I do programs, but some of them are only an hour and a half long. I’m not sure if what I taught those kids will last in their brains, and this one’s a little bit lasting. They’ll probably remember this one for the rest of their lives, also they’ll tell their family and friends about it and it adds to the community, as well,” Ritchie said.
Once the school finished painting their fish, the mural was attached to the fence on Duclos property.
LICA hopes to expand the program to other schools in the future, to educate more students and add more Stream of Dreams murals.
