North Mac Junior Spearheads Bee City USA Effort in Girard

Ella Eldridge Has Comprehensive Plan to Earn the Honor for the City

by Tom Emery

Few communities in Illinois carry the designation of Bee City USA. A junior at North Mac High School is spearheading an effort to bring that honor to Girard. Ella Eldridge has devoted countless hours to the project, using her boundless energy, exceptional organization, and foresight to create a unique opportunity for her hometown.

“Being a Bee City will help our native bees, and bring awareness to their declining population,” remarked Ella. “I have bees myself, and I’m really passionate about them and their importance. Also, if we become a Bee City, hopefully it will bring more people to Girard, to start visiting us and see what we have to offer,” continued Ella. “It would be good for our small town, to get more recognition.”

Bee City USA is a program to promote, conserve, and sustain native pollinators in participating communities around the nation. To be accepted as a Bee City, communities must establish a standing Bee Campus USA committee as an advocate for pollinators, establish and nurture pollinator habitats with increases in native plants and nest sites, reduce pesticide use, and sponsor classes or continuing education opportunities for pollinator conservation. Communities also create service-learning projects on pollinator habitat, erect signage to promote pollinator conservation, and maintain an online platform to share Bee City activities. Annual reports are required as part of the program.

Founded in 2012, the Bee City USA program is now an initiative of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, an Oregon-based organization that dates to 1971. The designation as a Bee City USA is relatively rare. Carlinville was the first community in Illinois to earn the honor and is one of only four in the state that are part of Bee City USA, including Hawthorn Woods, Barrington Hills and Port Barrington. Surrounding states have even fewer cities in the program. Wisconsin has six Bee City USA communities, but Iowa and Kentucky only have one each. There are none in either Missouri or Indiana.

If Girard becomes a Bee City USA, it would be one of the smaller communities in the program, as many participants are larger, with far more resources. Much of Ella’s Bee City effort is based on Ronnie Fox Memorial Park. The park is an emotional part of life in Girard, as it honors one of the town’s military heroes. Fox, a local resident, was a lance corporal of artillery in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War who died in the line of duty. On Jan. 8, 1968, Fox was a passenger in a helicopter that crashed into the side of a mountain in southern Vietnam. All 46 people aboard were killed. Fox had just turned 21 two months before. He is buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in south St. Louis.

Ella certainly understands the importance of the park. “Ronnie was a small town hero, who gave up his life in a war,” she said. “I feel like he touched a lot of people. He was a special young man.”

Ella’s additions at the park include a 10’ X 40’ garden, filled with native plants. “I’ve been working with the Illinois Native Plant Society, and they have been a big help in this project,” said Ella. “Alana McKean of the society has been really helpful with whatever I’ve needed.”

The attractive, scenic garden will feature twelve different plants, including orange coneflower, purple coneflower, sky blue aster, and orange butterfly milkweed. “Those are all really beautiful plants, and are attractive to bees,” said Ella. “We’re trying to attract and protect pollinators, and those are some of the best plants to use.”

Ella also has other plans for the park. “We’re also talking about a memorial for Ronnie,” she remarked. “I think that’s really important. Once we get the garden in, we’d like to have a larger sign for the park, to help with the project.”

Showing remarkable organizational skills for her age, Ella has rounded up plenty of community support. “I’ve organized meetings to get people involved, and make them aware of the importance of this project,” she said. “I started this at the beginning of my sophomore year, trying to get things ready, and researching what we need to do.

“We’ve held Bee City meetings at our local community center that were open to the public, to build awareness of what this is all about,” continued Ella. “At those meetings, we signed up a lot of people for different committees, to start working toward getting everything done.

“Those committees include landscape design, gardening, resources, education, and a bunch of other things,” she said. “A lot of people really liked the garden part, because it’s a really fun thing that we can get out there, and work on. I’m always emailing different people about all of this, too.”

Ella clearly has a comprehensive plan, and she’s putting it into action. “I’ve spoken to the Kiwanis Club here, and they’ve offered to fully help and support me,” she said. “Carrie Harris of Carlinville has been really supportive, too.”

Ella also credits Mary Tinder, an energetic, civic-minded Carlinville resident who is a leading player in the Bee City effort in that city. “Mary’s helped me so much with everything,” said Ella. “She’s really helped as a source of knowledge, and with the materials I need to help me push for Bee City designation here in Girard.”

As if Ella didn’t have enough to do already, she has been a four-sport athlete at North Mac, in volleyball, basketball, track, and golf. This season, she will not play golf, citing time concerns. She’s also a chapter and section officer in FFA. Not surprisingly, Ella hopes to have a career in agriculture or agribusiness.

“I’d like to go into something in agriculture or agribusiness, particularly in pesticides,” she said. “It’s important to create healthier pesticides for farmers, weeds, and pollinators.”

For more information on the Bee City USA program, visit beecityusa.org. To become involved in the Girard effort, email [email protected].

Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Ill. He may be reached at [email protected] or 217-710-8392.