Spring Tire Round-Up

We had yet another successful Tire Round-Up this Spring! Our community removed 140 tires from our watershed to be recycled sustainably!


A big thank you to Michael Brothers Companies for hosting the event, to Westmoreland Cleanways and Recycling for organizing the recycling, and to our volunteers Tom Goldinger, Dana Pacolay (Board Member), Bethany Eutsey (Board Member), Jenna Eutsey, Alexis Craig, Nik Ansell, and Andrea Delfavero for helping stack all those tires! We are happy to continue to offer this event!

Mentored Youth

Thank you to everyone who came out for JCWA’s Mentored Youth trout Day.

The water was a little high, but fish were still caught and the kids had a great day at the creek!

A special thank you to everyone who donated door prizes and to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission for helping us stock Jacobs Creek for the event. We could not have had a successful event without you!

Macro Mania!

A great time was had by all this past Thursday at our Macro Mania! event at White Bridge Road!

Participants learned about scientific sampling methods and explored the ecology of aquatic macroinvertebrates hands on! We observed over 15 taxa, including a HUGE hellgrammite (Eastern Dobsonfly) larva that was the highlight of the night!

The presence of these and other indicator species like stoneflies and water pennies tell us that Jacobs Creek is overall quite healthy at this site!

JCWA was able to purchase new sampling equipment through a PA DEP Environmental Education Grant received earlier this year!

A Night on the Lake

The 2022 Greenlick Fishing Derby was our largest attendance for the event ever by more than double! Over 80 participants wet their lines for the 3hr event, bringing in nearly 100 fish off all sorts. Highlights of the night included one 3+ lb Common Carp, several 15+ inch bass, and the competition’s first ever Walleye! Even the smallest fish, a Bluegill Sunfish less than 2 inches long, went home with a prize! In total with attendance and donations, the event gave out $500 in prizes and raised over $700 for JCWA! A huge thank you to all who attended!

Anglers of all ages enjoyed a beautiful night out on the lake!

A Headwaters to Remember

A big thank you to everyone who came to our 5th Annual Headwaters Fundraiser Party! The night was filled with great music, delicious food, beautiful sunflowers, and a lot of fun.

We are proud to announce that we had about 80 people in attendance for the evening. Jacobs Creek would like to say a HUGE thank you to our partners, Maple Bottom Farm, Bella Terra Vineyards, Helltown Brewing, Espey’s Meat Market, the Hickory Bottom Band, and to all of our sponsors. Our event would not have been possible without all of their generous support!

Everyone enjoyed the great food, music, raffle baskets, and more at this year’s Headwaters!

Families Float on Jacobs Creek

On June 25th JCWA held our annual Family Float Day down Jacobs Creek! Even though water conditions were on the low side, the weather was wonderful and it was a great way to beat the summer heat!

Folks of all ages enjoyed the float down the creek!

Volunteers Clean Up the Creek

Saturday June 18th, JCWA headed to the Bridgeport Dam for the annual ORSANCO Riversweep. ORSANCO, or the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, provides clean-up supplies like gloves, trash bags, and t-shirts each year to non-profits across the Ohio River watershed (a 204,000 square mile area spanning 11 states!). At our event, we had a great day with great weather and a lot of trash removed from our stream!

JCWA employee Isabel Poorbaugh and Board Member Gena Hoyer remove portions of a discarded door from the side of the road near Jacobs Creek.

Splash Into Summer with Our Pop-Up Paddling!

Our first pop-up paddling event on Friday afternoon was a great way to kick off summer! Even our four-legged friends enjoyed kayaking! If you missed our first paddling event, don’t worry there are still five more pop-up dates. Our next one is on June 15th from 1:00pm-5:00 pm. Find more information and additional dates here.

Follow this link https://www.eventbrite.com/e/342786442477 to sign up, and we will see you there!

Pets welcome on our kayaks, canoes, or stand-up paddleboards!

Students Enjoy a Day on the Creek!

Last Friday we had a great day out with the 7th and 8th Graders of Mt. Pleasant Middle School for their annual Trout-in-the-Classroom Release Day!

Students spent the year raising baby trout from eggs to be released into the cold waters of Jacobs Creek on the Laurelville property. While they were there, they also participated in various outdoor activities including sampling Macroinvertebrates with JCWA Program Coordinator Alex Busato! Students had a great time in the creek and learned about the importance of aquatic insects as indicators of water quality.

Thanks again for having us Mt. Pleasant Middle School!

Students sample the stream bottom for Macroinvertebrates using a kick net. Not do they serve as food for the student’s trout to grow on, but macroinvertebrates can tell a lot about the overall health of the creek ecosystem!

Wetland Walks Begin!

Last Thursday was JCWA’s first ever Wetland Walk!

Attendees had a great time exploring a wetland environment, encountering numerous species of bird and amphibian. Probably the most memorable were the American Toads that were singing to attract mates in the flooded roadway! (Photo by Alex Busato)

If you missed out this past week but want to learn more about wetlands and the critters that live in them, JCWA will be hosting two more of these events in May and June. See the link for additional details and sign-ups. Spots are limited!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/302872719457

An American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus) calls in the setting sun at the Jacobs Creek Wetlands