Dear FOLKS Member:

            

As we, the FOLKS board members, reflect on 2022, we are proud of what we have been able to accomplish this year with your help. You and the nearly 900 FOLKS members and businesses who provided financial support have made it all possible. With your generous financial support, and the over 1,800 hours that volunteers dedicated to our mission, we succeeded in the following areas:

 

·        We successfully fulfilled our water testing initiatives pledge through the SC Adopt-a-Stream training and testing kits; our program is a part of a larger statewide effort.

·        We aligned our water testing with the South Carolina Green Steps Initiative.

·        In conjunction with the SC Adopt-a-Stream program, we created the “Jack Lewis Watershed Stewardship Scholarship,” which was awarded to 5 local high school seniors who enrolled in the program and who have completed the required stream monitoring.

·        We awarded funding to establish the Bill Miller Water Quality Monitoring Program, as part of Walhalla High School’s Green Steps Program, to establish a lending library for water quality monitoring kits for high school students.  

·        We were awarded two new Keowee-Toxaway Habitat Enhancement Program grants for the installation of additional fish habitat in Lake Keowee. The habitat will continue to create an ecologically balanced and rich environment for the health of the watershed.

·        We continued our joint sponsorship of the “Find and Fix Septic Program” in conjunction with the Lake Keowee Source Water Protection Team (LKSWPT) to address aging and distressed septic systems.  

·        Our volunteers dedicated over 1800 hours to complete monthly stream monitoring efforts, participate in spring and fall Lake Sweeps, completed frequent cleanups of more than 60 islands through our Island Keepers program, continued our efforts with the Adopt-a-Ramp program that is dedicated to shoreline cleanup efforts during peak summer usage times, and the monitoring of over 70 bluebird nesting boxes.

 

All these accomplishments were made possible by your dedicated financial support! When you take advantage of our generous sponsors’ dollar-for-dollar match your donation is doubled and will go twice as far. Your year-end contribution will help FOLKS have an even greater impact in 2023 and beyond. 

 

Thank you very much from the entire FOLKS Board! 

 

Dale Wilde, Dave Metzger, Sam Savoca, Dr. John Hains, Greg Prisk, Howard Gutenstein, and Russ Rhodus.

 

Click below to donate or please mail checks to our office: 

 

FOLKS

1209 Stamp Creek Road, Suite A

Salem, SC 29676

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