News : Benton County Naturalist Karen Phelps wins 2011 Brass Bluegill Award

Barb Gigar, Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Iowa DNR presents Karen Phelps the 2012 award

Each year the Iowa Department of Natural Resource’s Aquatic Education Program honors an individual for their efforts in helping Iowa’s youth become skilled anglers and advocates of fishing and natural resources conservation. Karen Phelps, Benton County Conservation Board Naturalist, is the 2012 recipient of the Brass Bluegill Award.

Phelps has established an outstanding local program that exemplifies the goals of Fish Iowa! She has been involved in the program for 10 years, reaching more than 1000 students each year. “I teach Fish Iowa! because as a child I learned life skills from my parents while fishing. Patience was at the top of that list. It is a fun activity that doesn’t involve a lot of cost, and it can provide hours of entertainment.” Phelps uses Fish Iowa! with all age groups of children, elementary through high school, as well as adults.

Karen partners with DNR staff, neighboring county conservation boards, and a host of local conservation and education groups to connect children with the outdoors. As the Benton County Conservation Board naturalist, she also teaches canoeing, kayaking, IOWATER (water quality) testing, archery, and hunter education. Overall, Phelps conducts conservation education programs for more than 12,000 participants each year; as many as 1,300 students visit the Benton County Conservation Nature Center in one month during the field trip season.

She also trains other educators to use conservation education materials like Fish Iowa!, Greenschools, and Project WILD, WILD Aquatic, and Learning Tree, as well as NASP.

To say that Karen is passionate about the outdoors would be an understatement! “To see the joy on a child’s face when they catch their first fish, or to see grandparents glow with pride when they take their grandchild fishing – it’s all worth it.”

Karen was presented with her award at the Natural Resources Commission meeting in Des Moines on March 8. As part of the award, Benton County Conservation Board received a set of 24 fishing rod and reels and carrying racks from the Aquatic Education Program. Fish Iowa! strives to create safe anglers and responsible stewards of Iowa’s aquatic resources. Fish Iowa! is supported by Sportfish Restoration Funds, which are obtained from excise taxes paid on fishing tackle and related items and fishing license dollars.