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Captain John is an avid storyteller and loves to regale the children with facts about the 213 species of creatures that call the Hudson River home. He describes the shallow waters of the river as a “nursery” for baby creatures, allowing them to grow before they head out to deeper waters. He has pictures of the sturgeons that inhabit the river and tells the children how they are being poached for their eggs. He explains how the river is brown — not because it’s dirty, but because the water is dense with plankton and other life. He shows the necessity of a clean water supply by pointing out where people fish or gather crabs. He points to the racing boats whose occupants are enjoying the water. Then, after he has captured the children’s attention with all fun aspects of river life, he takes them to a site where the water is pungent with the smell of sewage being pumped in by an adjoining plant, and shows them the pictures he keeps on his boat of an oil spill. He explains that they are the stewards of the water and how it is everyone’s job to keep the water clean. By doing something as simple as not pouring cleaning supplies down the drain, the water quality is improved and life is lengthened for the creatures in the river.
As it exists, Riverkeeper is a watcher — it identifies problems once they arise — but its work is not proactive. The organization is attempting to change that through its partnership with Laurie Seeman. Riverkeeper and Captain John will continue to patrol the water, while Seeman will go to schools and set up art-based community programs to spread the word about conservation.
Along the way, those with a special commitment to river stewardship will be invited to spend time on Capt. John’s river boat.
In addition to her Riverkeeper duties, Laurie Seeman hosts after-school, nature-art workshops for children ages 6-11 at her studio, and a summer program, now running 10 years. She also specializes in creating custom, year-round, environmental art education workshops on request for private groups, schools and communities. For more information,
contact her at (845) 558-0877 or strawtownstudio.com. Riverkeeper may be reached at (800) 21-RIVER and Riverkeeper.org.
