On Friday, November 16th Susquehanna Heritage participated in the Extraordinary Give in Lancaster County. The event is coordinated by the Lancaster County Community Foundation and is the county’s largest day of online giving. Contributors can support nearly 500 different organizations. This year Susquehanna Heritage had generous match fund donors that dedicated $8,000 to double public donations. In total, Susquehanna Heritage received $16,741 in total giving, including $8,578 in day of giving donations, a new record for us! 

It was an amazing day of giving throughout the county and we loved spending it with our friends along the river! The Extraordinary River Party allowed river-goers to get together and celebrate the great progress in our region. Thank you to all those who participated in the day and contributed to Susquehanna Heritage. Your contributions allow Susquehanna Heritage to connect thousands of children, residents, and visitors to the transformative power of the river! We especially thank our match fund donors as well as the local businesses that donated foods and spirits for our party — Moo-Duck Brewery, Columbia Kettle Works, Bube’s Brewery, McCleary’s Pub, and Isaac’s Restaurants.!

Add the Extraordinary River Party to your Calendar —

Check out the Canoemobile Fun!

Enjoy a look back at this fun and transformative riverfront experience.

Fifth grade students from Lancaster and York counties paddled the Susquehanna in 24 foot Voyageur canoes, and participated in field studies, learning about the science, history, geography, and culture in their home towns on October 3-5. Susquehanna Heritage hosted the local school districts at Columbia Crossing River Trails Cents. The National Park Service, National Parks Conservation Association, Pennsylvania State Parks, and Susquehanna Heritage came together to offer the “Canoemobile” program from the Minnesota-based organization, Wilderness Inquiry. Wilderness Inquiry is a non-profit organization that connects people to the natural world through shared outdoor experiences. Susquehanna Heritage and our partners offered educational land stations to complement the paddle excursions. Students learned about Native American dugout canoes and the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. They learned about water runoff and pollution through a hands-on watershed model. Thanks to DCNR Ranger Curtis Sherwood, students met fresh water eels and learned about their relationship with fresh water mussels.  A homeschool session was held on Thursday. On Friday afternoon, the public was invited to canoe with Wilderness Inquiry. The river’s current was swift and water levels remained high throughout the week. As a result, some groups were unable to paddle at Columbia. Wilderness Inquiry did transfer the canoes to Lock 2 along Long Level when it was possible. Students, teachers, families, and visitors greatly enjoyed the field trip and excursion.

You all really made a difference in the life of our children. We are a Title I building, and many of our children would never have had this wonderful experience. We appreciate it so much!

— Principal, Friendship Elementary

Water Quality Analyzed by

Local Homeschool Students

In early 2018, Susquehanna Heritage applied to the Lancaster Sierra Club grant program. The program supports the club’s mission to enjoy and explore the outdoors while protecting our natural resources. The Club members support conservation and preservation efforts in Lancaster County and also enjoys group outings like camping, hiking and biking. Our mission at Susquehanna Heritage parallels the Sierra Club as we seek to responsibly utilize our natural landscape and historic site to encourage visitation and economic development in the river corridor. In particular, our missions overlap related to the health of the Susquehanna River – the main contributor to the Chesapeake Bay. It is essential that our communities understand their impact on the river and the bay, and how to diminish that impact. 

Susquehanna Heritage has hosted numerous programs related to the health of the river but was in need of water quality testing kit that measure physical and chemical indicators including pH, phosphates, nitrates, temperature, dissolved oxygen, alkalinity and turbidity.  This kit would improve programs by allowing us to scientifically investigate the health of the river. Our goal was to explore the cultural history, ecology and current status and health of the Susquehanna River and its watershed by providing hands-on activities that get participants to test the water quality of the river through scientific instrumentation. Susquehanna Heritage is thankful that the Lancaster Sierra Club accepted our grant request!

In October, Program Coordinator Allison Scholz and Chesapeake Conservation Corps Member Amy Kochel welcomed a large group of home school families to a Water Quality Workshop. Participants looked for physical, chemical, and biological indicators in our waterways. Students collected data using the kit and analyzed the results to better understand the health of the river. Additionally, the group hiked to a local storm water outfall to collect data. The storm water, which was from downtown Columbia, helped students to understand what kinds of pollutants may be traveling from residents to the river. In the end, students and parents clearly understood why clean, healthy water is essential to wildlife, plants, and humans.

Susquehanna Heritage thanks the Lancaster Sierra Club for supporting our programs by supplying this water quality kit. More programs for scout groups, clubs, and the general public will be available in the future.

Susquehanna Heritage is participating in the Extraordinary Give — Lancaster County’s Largest Online Giving Day!

On Friday, November 16, you will have just 24 hours to donate to Susquehanna Heritage. The more donations Susquehanna Heritage receives, the farther it’s stretched. This year the stretch pool totals over $500,000. It’s a great opportunity for every dollar you donation make an extra impact on the river. Please help us to spread the word about the ExtraGive on Friday, November 16^th! Remember the Extraordinary Give is entirely ONLINE so the best way to share is online and via email! Maybe you can’t wait for the new boat tours on the river, you love our educational programs, or you just like to ride the trails — we’re counting on your to spread your love for the river and inspire others to give.

So spread the word and save the date! Friday, November 16th is the day to donate online to Susquehanna Heritage.

Join us at Our River Party!

Susquehanna Heritage will once again host our Extraordinary River Party from 4 PM to 8 PM on ExtraGive Day at Columbia Crossing! This is our opportunity to invite all the friends of the river to Eat, Drink & Give! Join us to enjoy live music from the Dreadnought Brigade Duo who will be serving up ‘feel good’ tunes of blues, rock, and folk. Scrumptious appetizers, beer, wine, and B(ike)YO wine slushies will make it a true cocktail hour. Giving stations throughout the party will help us build funds for the river! Let’s celebrate the river together!

Minimum donation of $25 required by ExtraGive.org. Questions about the ExtraGive? Call Hope at 717-449-5607 ext 1.

As we start the New Year, arctic cold has transformed the Susquehanna outside our Zimmerman Center for Heritage into an icy winter wonderland. We are thankful to be inside looking out, warm with the layers of history that inhabit this 18th century stone sentinel of a building on what was once America’s frontier. It’s a great time to reflect on another successful year advancing our vision for the river as a national destination for outdoor fun and cultural discovery.

In 2017 we launched year-round weekend hours and programs at the Zimmerman Center, doubled annual visitors to almost 5,000, and welcomed over 400 local school children to learn about history, nature, and art through the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. At Columbia Crossing River Trails Center we launched new exhibits and programs, hosted the Canoemobile event for hundreds of 5th graders, and helped 23,000 visitors find their place on the river. We saw our National Heritage Area bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and celebrated with many generous friends of the river at our Annual River Experience event in Wrightsville and our first-ever Extraordinary River Party in Columbia.

More is on the way for 2018. With the National Park Service and other partners, we’ll complete important planning efforts for the John Smith Chesapeake Trail, design accessibility improvements at the Zimmerman Center, and prepare for new land and water shuttle service linking both sides of the river. We’ll continue to lead tourism development for the Susquehanna Riverlands, publish maps, websites, and social media, and improve visitor readiness. All of these efforts will enhance quality of life for residents and bring economic vitality to our communities through tourism.

This is all possible through strong, sustaining funding partnerships with the PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources, National Park Service, Lancaster and York Counties, Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority, York County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Columbia Borough, the Ralph H. Goodno Riverlands Fund managed by Lancaster County Conservancy, and our many generous individual and corporate donors. Thank you all so much. We’ll see you along the river – whatever the season!

Mark Platts, President

We need your support to win 2018 River of the Year!

Vote for Lower Susquehanna/Susquehanna Riverlands for River of the Year!

Susquehanna Heritage & Lancaster County Conservancy recently worked to complete an application for River of the Year. Our organizations work together on the Susquehanna Riverlands Conservation Landscape Initiative, a project funded and created by PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources.

The Susquehanna Riverlands has grown in the last ten years,  preserving hundreds of acres; expanding river access; developing parks and trails; and supporting the local economy through tourism. The Susquehanna Riverlands features three major lakes created by hydroelectric dams, three nationally recognized recreation trails (Susquehanna River Trail, Kelly’s Run Pinnacle Trail, and the Mason-Dixon Trail), as well as the 14 mile Northwest River Trail, and the Turkey Hill section of the 29 mile Enola Low Grade Rail Trail.  It provides opportunities to explore the rich historical and cultural history of the Lower Susquehanna Region including significant American Indian cultural landscapes, ecologically sensitive bird habitat such as the Conejohela flats and more than 2,000 acres of protected publicly accessible land, in 29 municipalities in Lancaster and York Counties.

Our organizations recognize that the River of the Year award would push forward the Susquehanna Riverlands brand. Plus the award includes funding to create and improve special events in the Susquehanna Riverlands. Events that you can be a part of! So help us to create some amazing river adventures by voting for Lower Susquehanna/Susquehanna Riverlands! We’re up against some tough competition so encourage your family and friends to vote too!

VOTE NOW

The Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers, or POWR, administers the River of the Year program for PA DCNR. This recognition is done to raise awareness of the important recreational, ecological, and historical resources associated with the state’s rivers and streams. Local organizations like ours submit nominations.

We had a great time hosting Canoemobile at Columbia Crossing and River Park on October 16th and 17th. Fifth graders from Columbia School District, Eastern York, and home school groups participated in this day of adventure and learning on land and water. So inspiring to see so many kids discover the Susquehanna up close on a beautiful fall day – for many their first time in a canoe or on the river!

Our mission is to connect people to the river and its history and there’s no better way than getting on the water. Susquehanna Heritage worked with Wilderness Inquiry, National Parks Conservation Association and National Park Service Chesapeake Bay to coordinate and create an amazing experience for students. Thank you especially to National Parks Conservation Association for funding the bussing and programming. The partners plus Pennsylvania State Parks‘ Educator Curtis Sherwood also joined the Susquehanna Heritage team to offer land stations that directly tied the on-water experience with our local history, environment, and watershed.

Explore the images and videos below to see how this great program impacted students.

Susquehanna Heritage is proud to host the work of local Columbia artist Diana Thomas at Columbia Crossing this September. The exhibit, titled Current Color: A Year on the River  chronicles Thomas’s year long journey creating an acrylic painting per week.  “Making art can be a healing experience.  I’ve always known that but not until last year did I know it to the depths I do now.” explains Columbia artist, Diana Thomas.  “After all that happened I still marvel that I was able to paint fifty-two paintings of the lower Susquehanna River, one painting a week for a year.”

Though the paintings are the most visible part of her unique project, ‘Current Color – A Year on the River’, there is more to this presentation.  Thomas decided to keep a weekly journal entry that portrays a strong current of life lessons flowing through her body of work.  She writes of the River’s beauty and peaceful healing presence when her life was touched by tragedy.

Thomas initially began the project in December 2015,  to practice allowing herself the time to create art on a more regular basis than she had been doing.   “I wanted to create a challenge that would stretch me but one that was also realistic enough to complete,” she explained.  “I set up an album for each quarter of the year for all the photos I would take several times a week.  It seemed fitting to keep a written record of the progress, the process of making the art, and any particulars about the river itself.”  She started to work just before Christmas, 2015.

“As the body of work began to grow I had a strong sense that the paintings had a message of some kind and were telling it in a way that a single painting or two could not.  It seemed as if they were becoming something like a visual choir.  By the time I had finished the first quarter I knew the pieces would need to remain together as a group to share their message.”

Three quarters of the way through the project, on September 14th, 2016, Diana’s 41 year old daughter died tragically, losing her long battle with substance overuse.  Less than a month later the same tragedy befell her daughter’s mate of ten years, leaving behind their then 8 year old son.  “I don’t really have any words to express what our family went through in the first weeks and months after that but I felt compelled to try to ‘say’ something to my daughter or for her through painting.  Our daughter was an artist and singer, and I knew she would have wanted me to keep going with the project.  I created a piece called ‘River of Tears’.  I also created a painting in honor of our son-in-law called “Even the Moon Cried.”  Though both pieces are included in the ‘Current Color’ presentation, Thomas at first did not think she would show these two paintings.  “But by then ‘Current Color’ had taken on a life of its own and this sad time needed to be part of the whole”, she said.

In April all the paintings were seen for the first time at a brief showing at Historic Mount Bethel Cemetery in Columbia, PA and the response surprised Thomas.  So many people who love the Susquehanna were telling her their own life stories about places represented by many of the scenes.  She also told how touching it was that many people wanted to see ‘River of Tears’ and say how sorry they were and that they too were familiar with that kind of tragedy.  “Of course I had no way to know what was in store when the year began but I can truly say painting through it was a blessing in disguise.  I pray it will also have a healing effect on others.”

“The Susquehanna River has brought me peace many times through the sad events our family has faced in the recent months. I’m grateful for the experience of observing her and painting her.”

Enjoy this compelling exhibit at Columbia Crossing River Trails Center during September. Exhibit hours are 10 am to 5 pm Tuesdays through Thursdays and 9 am to 6 pm Fridays through Sundays. Handmade greeting cards featuring these beautiful works are also available from the artist with a portion of the proceeds benefiting Susquehanna Heritage.