Seeing the Sea: Linkhorne Elementary Gets A Visit From the Tide Pool Cruiser
It was just another day on the West Coast for Gary Poe, only this time, he was standing next to the Linkhorne Elementary School playground in Lynchburg, Virginia. Either way, the students he entertained were ready to get their hands wet and meet some of the Pacific’s greatest gifts – sea life.
Poe is the founder and executive director of Windows on our Waters, a non – profit organization that aims to teach children the importance of sea creatures and taking care of our environment. For the past month and a half Poe has been traveling across the country with his Tide Pool Cruiser – a trailer full of everything from trash to sea life (don’t worry the two are kept apart). On Wednesday, he let the children of Linkhorne get to know his underwater friends.
Living in land locked Lynchburg, students are much more likely to see sea creatures in books than in the water. Poe hoped a dose of the real deal would give the students a greater appreciation of sea creatures. In turn, he taught them a lesson in environmental responsibility by pointing out the actions that we can take here to make an impact on the animals living in the Atlantic.
On one side of The Tide Pool Cruiser was a dirty sewer system. On another, the “Travelin’ Tide Pool Touch Tank”, and on a third, the General Store of the Sea; a place with dozens of everyday foods made with the help of sea life.
Linkhorne Elementary was the only school Poe visited in the state of Virginia and the lesson was free of charge. In all, Poe will visit 15 schools in 11 states and Washington D.C. before landing in Mystic, Connecticut on May 7.
