Soldiers Grove non-profit, working to heal a piece of Mother Earth
While Mother Earth continues to feel the effects of humans in a not so positive way, a group in Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin is taking steps to give back to her. The ‘Swamp Project People’ have that very intention.
Soldiers Grove is nestled in a beautiful valley with the Kickapoo River meandering through it, is a tight knit village with a bit of history. Now, normally I would get into that history, but, by no means, want to digress from the present efforts to help heal what is referred to as the “slough”, also known as Myrtle Lake.
The past few decades, the lake has seen a steady decline in its health. There are several feet of silt build up, invasive species growth, and some refuse that plague its health. The once cleaner and deeper lake fed by seven springs, was once a recreation mecca for the village kids. “This was our childhood stomping grounds”, said Justus Benson who grew up in Soldiers Grove and lives right across the street from the lake.
Three years ago, Benson and some of his friends who all have fond memories growing up around the lake, started the Swamp Project People to give back to this small piece of Mother Earth. “It kind of all came about through COVID. So, as we're on lockdown, a few of us neighbors kind of all got together and wanted to make a change. Over the years, it's really gotten a lot of flood damage.” Benson stated the last flood, the year before Covid hit, had pushed through the old town just above the lake, depositing debris and silt into the lake. “There was a lot of debris, including a gazebo. We got permission from the village to clean up and take it out, and from that point forward, us as a group, kind of old friends and community members, decided that we wanted to really, you know, move forward and clean this thing up. From there, it just kind of snowballed into, ‘Okay, well how do we raise money?’, and we decided we needed to be a non-profit.”
Now a 501 (c)(3), the Swamp Project People is run by Justus Benson, Randy Swiggum, Dan Swiggum, Sam Goodwin, Dylan Skrede, Arleena Peralta, Josh Staum, and Deb Staum. According to their Facebook page, the group is dedicated to the design, development and restoration of ‘The Slough’ (Myrtle Lake), into a usable body of water for a swimming beach, fishing, paddling, and host of other great outdoor experiences.
Coining the name “The Swamp Project People” for their organization, Benson said they went under the direction of the Crawford Stewardship Project (CSP). For the group, it was a no brainer to work with the CSP, as CSP’s mission is to protect Crawford County and neighboring regions from threats of polluting and extractive industries, to promote sustainable land and water use, environmental justice, and local control of natural resources. “The CSP has been a great asset as far as clean water and helping us figure out how to do all the water sampling and testing we've been doing during the thawed season. So, we're coming in every month, testing for phosphorus levels, chlorophyll, sending in samples to labs, to get records basically for Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) stuff. And that's been a lot of work, a lot of learning curves. But that'll really help mitigate and help us figure out how we're going to tackle low oxygen levels in the water and try to get this back to a healthy body of water. We have learned a lot along the way.”
This stewardship takes quite a bit of money though. That is, for a lack of better terms, how Swamp Fest was born. This past weekend the festival in its third consecutive year, was billed as a music in the park event, hosting several local and area music artists. Several area vendors were on site, offering food, drinks, and clothing among other goods. Also billed as a family friendly event, there were children’s activities and games.
“Kind of our vision in the beginning you know, we wanted to make this beautiful park for the next generation, for the kids, you know, to have a place to come and gather like we had. Even these events we're doing now, the fundraiser is a lot about the community, the people, and coming together, and having something solid to grow from. It's giving me goosebumps talking about it,” said Benson.
Benson believes the land is sacred. He pointed out the first year Swamp Fest was held, he had everybody take off their shoes and just touch the earth, to be grounded and have a direct connection with Mother Earth and her energy. Benson also feels he and others in the community, over time, have an inherent responsibility. “We messed this body of water up, you know, like us as people, and it's our time to really come together and fix what we've destroyed. Mother nature isn't happy with us, and even to just fix this little swamp, to get to the point we are today, has taken three years, and we still are working on our WDNR permits now. But all this stuff takes so much work,” he said enthusiastically.
While waiting for their WDNR permit to be approved, Benson noted the group has purchased their first piece of equipment to mitigate weed over-growth. A majority of the funds raised over the last three years have gone towards purchasing a $7000 rake system.
Once they get the permit approved, dragging to remove weeds will begin and down the line some dredging to increase the current 1.5-foot depth of the lake. “This first step will be getting the invasive species vegetation out. We'll do a lot of that with the rake, but then there's like three feet of muck on the bottom that needs to be removed.”
Myrtle lake also holds some hidden historic treasures. Benson shared, when the group first started cleaning out around one of the springs, they found an old wagon wheel from a horse and buggy half rotted. Later, spindles from the wheel were located. Benson added that they would like to clean all the old items they find in the lake, eventually housing them in a museum showcasing some of the history of the Soldiers Grove.
Like father like son, Benson’s 19-year-old son Benjamin has been helping his father with the project. “It's been really nice having him there with me. He's part Native American. He has three different tribes in his heritage. So, there is that connection he has with the land. We're passing this stewardship on, because we might not get this to where we want it to be (completed restoration) in my time. Today or tomorrow could be my day. But it’s about instilling this in him and the whole village, and getting this energy moving forward, because it's all energy. I'm having a good time. You got to have fun. Do the work, but have fun. You know, we want this to be a really cool story and it's been a blessing,” he said with a smile.
Check out The Swamp People Project on Facebook.
