An encore on KARE 11

Earlier this week, I was contacted by a producer at KARE 11 TV; she wanted to let me know that to kick-off their Earth Day-related coverage this week, the station wanted to re-broadcast the story they had produced about our project last year (the story was shot on May 16 & 17, 2008).

The producer asked if I could provide any update about our project. The inquiry made me reflect on the past year... and everything we have learned. About generosity, as demonstrated by people like Joe Rauscher, who offered to outfit our project with kayaks on behalf of his company, Joe's Sporting Goods. That a blog is a great way to meeting people of like mind; we have been contacted by people from as far as Oregon, Virginia, Massechusetts and even New Brunswick... people who are as passionate as we about the restoration of rivers and shorelines. And closer to home, we've learned from friends like the FMR, and Minnesota Waters.

We have learned that people like Tim Brown from the MPRB are prepared to commit energy to a problem, once that problem has been well defined. And that nature has a friend in Paul Nordell, the Adopt-a-River coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. He doesn't do this because it's his job. It is his job because it is his passion.

KARE 11 broadcast an "encore" of the story about our project in tonight's 6:30 telecast. [Click on here to see the story at KARE 11. It is available as both text and video.] It's nice to know the story--and our project--still has merit. The only of our updates that were added to the story had to do with the clean-up we conducted on International Coastal Cleanup day last fall. Had the producer included all of the people we tried to thank for their assistance and impact, I'm sure the story would have been too long for a newscast.

If you are among those folks who've helped us learn or inspired us along the way, thanks.

© Mike D. Anderson, Crystal, MN. All rights reserved.