RLEP on the move:
Annual meeting celebrates busy year

by Kaye Kohler, Fall 2006

	Photo by Pam Owen.

Once each year, our growing membership comes together to review and appreciate the accomplishments of the preceding year, hold elections of new board members, recognize members who have distinguished themselves in supporting RLEP's mission, and share an evening of fun with others interested in preserving the natural resources and rural character of Rappahannock County.

This year the RLEP Board of Directors will give a new award, the "Spirit Award," to a Rappahannock resident who practices what RLEP preaches, all on their own, without fanfare or expectation of public recognition or rewards. Come find out who our local hero is this year!

We'll also have displays and presentations on programs RLEP sponsored this year. Our Biodiversity Task Force has had a busy year so far, starting with a Spring Nature Series that included a presentation on peregrine falcon restoration in Shenandoah National Park and walks for identifying migratory songbirds and native wildflowers. During the summer, the Task Force organized the first Rappahannock butterfly count and held a butterfly identification workshop (see opposite page). Biodiversity Task Force Coordinator Pam Owen will give an audiovisual presentation summarizing the group's accomplishments so far and plans for future programs.

Didn't make it to RLEP's first Piedmont Alternative Energy Expo last May? A special display will capture the event photographically. Jill and Jed Duvall, who head RLEP's Alternative Energy Project, were tremendously busy throughout the year organizing the Expo. Using their exhaustive resources and contacts in this field, the Duvalls were able to bring together 40 diverse exhibitors for a day of education and commerce at the Fauquier Fairgrounds. The event was considered a huge success by the vendors—and the 650 people who attended.

	Mars Rover. Image courtesy NASA.

The Expo's featured exhibit was a full-scale model of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration's Mars Rover, one of the most successful American unmanned crafts. Exhibits abounded on "clean" energy, solar power, hybrid cars, wind turbines, biodiesel fuel, small-scale renewable energy power plants, and more. Several exhibitors displayed and demonstrated alternative housing materials for building an energy-efficient home. Also discussed were alternative fuels: students from Woodberry Forest displayed their successful efforts to turn the school's waste cooking oil into biodiesel fuel for their own school buses. If you missed the Expo or just want to revisit it, you can check our photo display of it at the annual meeting.

Due to the (rather raucous) success of the mini-auction last year, Kaye and Rick Kohler have again volunteered to solicit donations from the community to be auctioned off with proceeds to benefit RLEP. We have a wonderfully diverse community of people who give generously for this event, so don't miss it! Bottom line? RLEP is on the move. Please join us for an evening of food, wine, and good cheer as we celebrate the innovations and initiatives of a banner year and choose leaders who will accelerate our success!

If you have an auction item to donate or have questions about the meeting, call the Kohlers at 540-675-1373 or send e-mail to mail@RLEP.org.