Do you dream about making your corner of the earth greener?

Marlee St. Pierre has been dreaming this since moving to Walnut Grove and joining the Yorkson Watershed Stewardship Committee a few years ago.

So Marlee was “grinning from ear to ear” when she was recently notified of $3,000 in funding from the RBC Bluewater Project towards the Stream of Dreams project at James Kennedy Elementary School in Walnut Grove.

Funding was also received from TD Friends of the Environment, the Pacific Salmon Foundation, the Township of Langley, local citizens and businesses.

“Stream of Dreams” began 10 years ago when Burnaby resident Louise Towell and her daughter were dismayed to learn that toxins had been released into a storm drain leading to a local creek.

Instead of despairing, they worked with local schools to create the first “Stream of Dreams,” transforming a chain link fence into a work of art and reminder that fish lurk nearby.

Marlee described to me how the dream was becoming reality at James Kennedy this June.

“The Stream of Dreams is swimming along nicely — the halls of the school are coming to life with colourful fish waiting to be released into their stream (the fence outside the playground!)”

“The classes are enjoying hearing the story of how all drains lead to fish habitat. They are learning where the streams flow in their neighbourhood of Walnut Grove, and who lives there: two species of Pacific salmon (coho and chum), as well as many many birds, amphibians, insects and mammals.

“The students then move into the gym where Louise inspires them to paint a unique and colourful ‘dream fish’. Each student paints a wooden fish of different sizes and shapes, representing salmon during the stages of their life.”

“The fish can be realistic or as far out as you can imagine. The kids love it. The teachers and parent volunteers even get to paint a fish.

As more fish get finished and are placed in the hallways to dry, the excitement grows amongst the students, parents and staff.

Marlee’s hope is that each child will take the message home that ‘all drains lead to fish habitat’ and make a plan with their family to keep pollution out of all drains in their home and neighbourhood.

“If our children can speak to a parent, grandparent or neighbour about how to wash their car or clean their home with non-toxic cleaners, it will be better received than reading it in a newspaper.”


Check out the Stream of Dreams art at James Kennedy and then take a stroll along the Yorkson and dream of clean streams for years to come.

David Clements is a professor of biology and environmental studies at Trinity Western University.