MILL CREEK METROPARKS January calendar

List of events scheduled at Mill Creek MetroParks:
Saturday: 9 a.m., meet at Yellow Creek Park Lodge, Struthers, to start the one-mile hike. Trivia about the different regions of Ohio will be discussed along with other interesting Buckeye facts. Soft drinks and hot beverages served after the hike.
Sunday: 2 p.m., five-mile hike around Lake Newport, the park district's largest body of water. Meet at Newport Wetlands parking lot.
Jan. 7, 14, 21 and 28: 5:30-7 p.m., yoga in the D.D. Davis Center. Learn the basics of energizing yoga movements taught by Heidi Suraci. Tea served after class. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $36 Mahoning County residents; $48 nonresidents.
Jan 8: 7 p.m., Yellow Creek Park Concert. Dance music by Eddie Vallus.
Jan. 8: 8:30-10 a.m., meet at Fellows Riverside Gardens for a brisk walk in the gardens. Breakfast of fruit and muffins served afterward in the Garden Cafe while learning about birches. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $5 R, $7 NR.
Jan. 9: 10, 10:45 or 11:30 a.m., 2-year olds and their adult companions are invited to explore the life of a fox in the winter through a story and craft. Call (330) 740-7107 to register.
Jan. 9, 16, 23, and 30: 8:30 to 10 a.m., yoga in the D.D. Davis Center. See Jan. 7 listing for details.
Jan. 11: 9 a.m., feeding the park's black-capped chickadees. Join volunteer naturalist Nancy Brundage for the annual program. Birdseed provided by the park. Meet at the golf course parking lot.
Jan. 12: 2 p.m., before the invention of artificial freezing technology, the Youngstown Ice Co. harvested ice for commercial use from Mill Creek and the Mahoning River. After a short slide presentation, participants will walk around Lake Glacier to see what remains of the company's heyday. Meet at Ford Nature Center. About four miles, medium difficulty with hills and steps.
Jan. 17: 10 a.m. to noon, horticulturist Paul Wentz will help participants learn the identifying characteristics of common landscape trees. Sessions will take place indoors and out. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $15 R, $20 NR.
Jan. 17, 10-11 a.m. or 1-2 p.m., and Jan. 18, 10-11 a.m.: Children 3 to 5 and their adult companions will learn about seeds and take home a kit to make their own sprouts. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $6.
Jan. 17, 10 a.m. or 12:30 p.m., and Jan. 18, 10 a.m.: Preschoolers 3 to 5 and their parents or adult companions will learn about sea life through special activities including a story and craft. Call (330) 740-7107 to register. Fee: $2.
Jan. 18: 12:30 p.m., kindergarten and first-grade pupils are invited to enjoy fun activities focused on ocean life. Call (330) 740-7107 to register. Fee: $2.50.
Jan. 18: 1:30-3 p.m., children 6 and older can bring good fortune to their homes by making a colorful wreath of different kinds of dried beans. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $9.
Jan. 18: 7 p.m., snow moon hike. Meet at Ford Nature Center. About 21/2 miles, medium difficulty with hills.
Jan. 19: 1:30-3 p.m., lecture presented by MetroParks naturalist emeritus Bill Whitehouse as he describes Volney Rogers, the man whose vision created Mill Creek Park, Ohio's first park district, in 1891. In 2000, Rogers' dedication and perseverance were recognized by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources when he was inducted into its Hall of Fame for his role in establishing Ohio's park districts. Call (330) 740-7116 to register.
Jan. 19: 2 p.m., Listen to the sounds of nature during a hike along Mill Creek, then visit the Lily Pond and the south end of Lake Glacier. Woodpeckers, chickadees and even a red-tailed hawk might break the winter silence. Meet at Ford Nature Center. Approximately 21/2 miles, moderate difficulty with hills and steps.
Jan. 24: 10 a.m. to noon, horticulturist Paul Wentz helps participants learn the identifying characteristics of common landscape trees. Sessions will take place indoors and out. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $15 R, $20 NR.
Jan. 24: 7 p.m., turtles, big and small, and from near and far including water and land varieties, will be represented at this turtle talk. Learn about the natural history of turtles, and see a diverse collection of species. Meet at Yellow Creek Lodge, Struthers.
Jan. 25: 10 a.m. to noon, flower arranging class. Marie Borocz will ensure that the work you carry home will make you feel spring has arrived. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $25 R, $32 NR.
Jan. 25: 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., an Environmental Educators' Resource Fair sponsored by the Environmental Education Council of Ohio and the park district. The teachers' workshop theme is biodiversity. Numerous area agencies will provide group presentations as well as concurrent sessions. Call Austintown Township Park at (330) 793-0718 to register. The fair will be at MetroParks Farm in Canfield. Fee: $20, includes lunch.
Jan. 26: 1 p.m., Jeff Janosik from the Ohio Division of Wildlife talks about the recovery of the bald eagle in our area and in Ohio. Bald eagles suffered great population declines in the 1960s from effects caused by the chemical DDT. Janosik will have a slide presentation of the birds. Meet at Ford Nature Center.
Jan. 31: 10 a.m. to noon, horticulturist Paul Wentz helps participants learn the identifying characteristics of common landscape trees. Sessions will take place indoors and out. Call (330) 740-7116 to register. Fee: $15 R, $20 NR.