Friends of the River KC

IT’S HAPPENING!!!

Today is National Arbor Day! It is a day to help our environment and our planet through simple acts of service. The main act of service celebrated on this day is planting a few trees and building awareness of their importance in our world. You can also try going for a hike and enjoying nature for a while, as well as reducing the number of paper products you use in your life! Click the link for more: https://loom.ly/BE0TczI #arborday #environment #awareness #FOR_KC

This is way cool!

Good afternoon, Kansas City! Welcome back to "Wildlife Wednesdays" with Friends of the River KC. Every Wednesday, we will post an animal doing fun and wacky animal stuff! We hope this brightens up your Wednesdays just a bit. This week we have this stunning falcon (hawk?), making sure you can keep a secret. We definitely wouldn't want to get on his bad side, no matter how innocent he looks! #kansascity #wildlife #animal #FOR_KC

April 27th is World Tapir Day. You may have seen these interesting herbivores at a zoo a time or two, but in the wild, they are highly endangered. This day is to raise awareness and funds to help maintain their habitats in Central and South America. This type of animal is one of the oldest types in the animal kingdom and that is why it is so important to try to preserve their species and habitat! Click the link for more information: https://loom.ly/uRHPvnY #wild #awareness #animal #FOR_KC

It is almost #2021!! This has been a disaster of a year for us when it comes to events and growing our community focus on our river and watershed areas. It has probably been the same for you, too. So join us in burning the ships of 2020 and for the love of everything holy - let's make twenty21 the best of the best. Just like the river flows, there is no going backward. Grab your paddle and we will see ya next year!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to our friends near and far! May all of your journeys be safe and warm.

Snow is back in the forecast, so it looks like you might have a few days off work! When done safely, winter activities can be a great way to incorporate physical activity into your day. Even something as simple as shoveling the driveway or having a snowball fight with your kids can burn hundreds of calories! #SnowDay

When the winter weather arrives, do you tend to make up excuses so you can skip a workout? As the temperatures cool down, take your workouts inside. Indoor rock climbing and racquetball are just two examples of indoor activities you can try this winter instead of staying cooped up in the office all day! #IndoorFun

Happy Thanksgiving to our friends near and far! This year especially, we are grateful for all of YOU. 2020 has been a doozy for all of us, but here's to steering the course in the right direction as we move forward in twenty21. We can't wait to see you back at events and on near, on, and in our MO rivers next year.

Did you know that your hands, head, and feet constitute your body’s initial warning system when temperatures start dropping? Due to their high surface area to mass ratio, these are the places that you are likely to feel the cold- and run the risk of incurring frostbite- first! Bundle up out there!

Attention turkey hunters! The Missouri Department of Conservation is asking Missouri turkey hunters to save and send feathers from the wild turkeys they harvest this fall as part of a new research project to help improve wild turkey management in Missouri. https://loom.ly/m3tiUxs

Other than jumping into a pile of leaves, we can't think of anything more quintessentially ~fall~ to do outdoors than going on a color hike! Make it a family affair by giving your littles a printout of the colors of the rainbow (or use paint sample cards) and have them find leaves and other items that match each color. Red, orange, green, yellow and brown will be easy. But can they find something purple? What about black and white? Bonus: this can be done nearly everywhere, even your own backyard!

Did you know that winter trout fishing is a big thing in MO? Lakes are cold enough to support trout so some are stocked for close-to-home fishing. There are a ton of fishin' holes between Kansas City and St. Louis for you to chase the rainbow (trout) even on crappie (see what we did there?) days! https://loom.ly/PM5Wjrw

Have you ever wondered how much energy you can save by recycling certain products? Well, the EPA has a tool for that! The individual Waste Reduction Model (iWARM) calculates how much energy you save by recycling aluminum cans, glass or plastic bottles, magazines or plastic grocery bags, and shows you how long those savings could power different electrical appliances. https://loom.ly/-OWmSL4

Are pizza boxes recyclable? Well, it depends on your municipality and the greasiness of the box. Pro-tip: If you can't recycle them, greasy boxes make excellent kindling. Don't ask us how we know. https://loom.ly/yr9LxFI

While we are well known for being River people, we’re Park people, too. Please don’t be a jerkface with, in, and to nature. Absolutely no good comes from this. https://loom.ly/IidjCto

Happy Hannukah! In this year of hard, strange, and uncertain times, enjoy celebrating with those you love the small miracles of this passing year. To all who celebrate: Hanukkah sameach!

Happy Halloween, river friends! Whatever you dress as this year, it can not possibly be more terrifying than the whole of 2020. Be safe, clever, and have a ton of fun out there! #HappyHalloween

Volunteers with Missouri River Relief agreed that while it looked a little different this year due to the pandemic, it was still a meaningful excursion. "I really love the river actually," volunteer Tanner Aljets said. "Just trying to do some good work upstream for everybody down stream." https://loom.ly/pvud1ao

Many of us are homeschooling our smaller Friends of the River, and that can be especially difficult if your child lives with ADHD and has an IEP. Research suggests that more time spent in our green spaces helps alleviate ADHD symptoms in children, which can make navigating this new-new thing we are all living in easier for everybody. https://loom.ly/mHVZOaQ

It turns out trees are good for us in addition to the whole producing oxygen thing! A team of social scientists at Texas A&M University looked at what sorts of mitigating factors in the driving environment might ease stress response and to nobody's surprise, found stressed drivers were able to return to baseline blood pressure and heart race after being exposed to a natural environment.

There's a reason so many real estate listings boast "tree-lined streets" as an asset! People who use parks and open spaces are three times more likely to achieve recommended levels of physical activity than those who don't. Much like the Dixie Chicks, new homebuyers are attracted to wide-open spaces when it comes to self-care.

FACT: Recovering surgery patients who had a view of a grove of trees through their windows required fewer pain relievers and on average left the hospital sooner than similar patients who had a view of a brick wall. Research: https://loom.ly/_N9Z-BQ . #tree #trees #surgery #recoverytime #Nature #hospital

If you couldn't tell by now, *ahem*, we're huge fans of the fall season. Give us decorative gourds, crunchy leaves, apple cider, and HIKES! There are sp many cool things going on at the country's first federally protected river corridor and Missouri's only national "park," Ozark National Scenic Riverways, we just might explode. The park is most famous for paddling, but this fall, it will be the go-to destination for hiking. And yes, there is a float trip included in the calendar. We've earned it.

This first week of October is Mental Illness Awareness Week. Millions of Americans face the reality of living with a mental health condition. This week, take time to get educated, fight stigmas, and provide support. Especially with COVID, things can look bleak right now. Be there. http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/MIAW

Have you been following the fall color report this year? The Missouri River basin boasts an array of trees, shrubs, and vines that change colors beautifully through the 4-6 weeks of the color change season. Depending on when and where you are, you may see vivid gold, earthy olive, and deep purple hues across the state. It is a beautiful and unique palette only found here. Follow https://loom.ly/YcF-Exw to keep track of our change this year.

Looking for an alternative to the hayride this year? The Missouri Department of Conservation has you covered! They'll be offering free guided Missouri River float trips on 10/15, one during the day and a far more ~romantic~ one at sunset. This is a great opportunity to burn off the calories from all those PSLs and learn more about big muddy. https://loom.ly/tbOuMqQ

For #NationalLovePeopleDay and to round out the end of the month, we want to know your favorite #LoveSongs to hike, boat, and explore are! We love an upbeat track, so we'll start with the obvious choice... https://loom.ly/1GdiT5s #NotThe21stNight #ButItStillSlaps #MOHiking #MORiver #Funky #ButNotAsFunkyAsYouAfterAHike

Young explorer, Ira Johnson, lives in Missouri. While walking along the Grand River, he came across what he thought was a big rock. Thinking it looked curious, he dislodged the large, shiny, object from the river and brought it home. In turn, his curiosity paid off 10,000-fold when the rock was identified as a fossilized mastodon tooth. https://loom.ly/Z9tho24