DNREC Announces ‘Take a Kid Fishing!’ Spring Events

A successful “Take A Kid Fishing!” adventure at DNREC’s Aquatic Resources Education Center near Smyrna. Events are listed below. /DNREC photo

 

Registration Open for a Full Season of Fishing Fun Through Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Aquatic Resource Education Center

Do you know a youngster or a young teen who might enjoy learning about fishing and the delight in having the opportunity to catch a fish? The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control invites budding anglers ages 6 through 15 to come out with a parent, grandparent, or guardian and learn how to fish. Educators from the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Aquatic Resources Education Center will be on hand to lead the activities and fishing.

“Spending time fishing with your children and grandchildren is a great way to have them experience nature and develop a love for an activity they can enjoy for the rest of their lives,” said Secretary Shawn M. Garvin. “With so many rich opportunities for angling in Delaware, participating in the ‘Take a Kid Fishing!’ program can help kickstart that passion!”

“Take a Kid Fishing!” events are offered free of charge to all participants, with advanced registration required. All fishing equipment is provided at no charge to participants for use at the events. To ensure that enough supplies are on hand for these free programs, advanced registration is required. To pre-register for the program, visit the DNREC events calendar, de.gov/dnrecmeetings. To learn more about AREC or the “Take a Kid Fishing!” program, visit de.gov/arec.

“Take A Kid Fishing!” events are scheduled at the following dates and locations:

  • 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 3, Silver Lake Park, Dover
  • 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Thursday, April 4, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday May 4, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, May 25, Lums Pond State Park, Bear
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, June 1, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Wednesday, June 12, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Thursday, June 29, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Tuesday, July 2, Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday July 13, Redden State Forest, Georgetown
  • 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Thursday, July 18, Silver Lake Park, Dover
  • 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday July 27, Bellevue State Park, Wilmington

“Take a Kid Fishing!” teaches young anglers fundamental fishing skills and conservation concepts, including catch-and-release. Along with the angling experience, these free fishing events also feature activity stations and prizes. Packing refreshments and a picnic lunch is encouraged.

Individuals 16 years of age and older who accompany and engage in fishing with “Take a Kid Fishing!” participants must have a current Delaware fishing license or a Delaware Fisherman Information Network (FIN) number. Delaware recreational fishing licenses are sold online and by license agents statewide. License-exempt anglers, including Delaware residents 65 and older, may obtain a free FIN number online or from a license agent where recreational fishing licenses are sold. Online services available at de.gov/fishinglicense include fishing license purchases, FIN numbers, a list of participating license agents, and additional related information. Children under the age of 16 are exempt from the license and FIN requirements.

Information on fishing in Delaware also can be found in the 2024 Delaware Fishing Guide, also available in printed form from license agents throughout the state.

“Take A Kid Fishing!” is sponsored by the DNREC Aquatic Resources Education Center, with host sites provided by the Division of Fish and Wildlife, DNREC’s Division of Parks and Recreation, Delaware Department of Agriculture Forest Service and City of Dover Parks and Recreation.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on more than 68,000 acres of public land owned or managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter) or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov; Joanna Wilson, joanna.wilson@delaware.gov

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DPH Offers Guidance And Resources On How To Navigate The Infant Formula Supply Shortage

DOVER (May 17, 2022)  The Division of Public Health (DPH) is providing guidance to families struggling to find formula due to a shortage caused by a supply chain issues, including avoiding taking certain measures that could be harmful to their infant’s health.

DPH sent out a letter from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau to families and maternal child health stakeholders, offering individuals information on how to safely navigate the shortages. 

Parents and caregivers are offered the following guidance:   

  •  Talk to your doctor: Families should consult their pediatrician to discuss the best options for their child. Doctors can provide guidance on comparable formula and specialized formula to meet their babies’ medical and nutrition needs. 
  • Consider a substitute formula: For most babies, it is OK to use a similar version of their formula if their regular brand of formula is not currently available. Talk with your baby’s pediatrician about alternatives.  
  • Check the manufacture’s site online for formula availability before going to a store to purchase.    

DPH reminds parents/guardians: 

  • Do not make or use homemade formula: Per the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), homemade formulas often lack or have inadequate amounts of critical nutrients vital for a babies growth and development and in some cases can cause infants to be hospitalized due to low calcium. 
  • Never dilute formula: Watering down infant formula can be dangerous and even life-threatening, leading to a serious nutritional deficit and health issues. 
  • Consider a substitute formula: For most babies, if their regular brand of formula is not currently available, using a similar version of their formula is ok. Talk with your baby’s pediatrician about alternatives.  
  • If not receiving breast milk, formula should be used until your baby turns 1 year old, but if your child is over six months you can start to supplement nutrition with some solids. Talk to your pediatrician about introducing some solids like fortified cereal, mashed bananas and pureed poultry and beans. 
  • Talk to your doctor: Families should consult their pediatrician to discuss the best options for their child. Doctors can provide guidance on comparable formula and specialized formula to meet their babies’ medical and nutrition needs.  
  • Breastfeed your child: When possible, breastfeeding is the healthiest option for children under age 1. 
  • For parents who are breastfeeding or need additional support, they may want to consider a lactation consultant or support groups, or seek assistance to access a breast pump at a low cost through your insurance provider, Medicaid, or WIC to assist with milk supply. There are also breast milk banks that properly store, test and distribute donated mothers’ milk to meet the specific needs of infants for whom human milk is prescribed by physicians.  The Delaware WIC program offers breastfeeding assistance to new mothers, including peer counselors, lactation consultants and manual pumps. Details on WIC’s breastfeeding programs can be found here. 

DPH has also taken the following steps to help parents and caregivers as the supply chain issues get resolved nationwide: 

  • WIC recipients have been asked to return any unused formula to the Food Bank of Delaware or another state agency food pantries.   
  • WIC recipients also were granted a waiver to substitute formula this winter when supply chain issues that were made worse by a recall first emerged. A chart of formula alternatives was created to help parents and caregivers select the right formula for their child.   
  • Parents who are breastfeeding or need additional support may want to consider a lactation consultant or support groups, or seek assistance to access a breast pump at a low cost through their insurance provider, Medicaid, or WIC to assist with milk supply. The Delaware WIC program offers breastfeeding assistance to new mothers, including peer counselors, lactation consultants and manual pumps. Details on WIC’s breastfeeding programs can be found here.   
  • DPH reminds parents that state and community resources that could be helpful during this time are available, such as WIC, SNAP, or TANF to help with the cost of buying formula or to find other infant supplies through local food banks including the Food Bank of Delaware. DPH also offers a breastfeeding guide for mothers who want to find support or learn more about breastfeeding.

Several birth hospitals in Delaware also offer breastfeeding support and parent education. Individuals should check with their local hospital to see what services are offered.   

Delawareans are encouraged to visit dethrives.com for up-to-date information on Delaware’s response to the infant formula supply chain issues, call 211 for community resources and services near you, or follow DEThrives and DPH on Facebook and Instagram.     

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Anyone who is deaf, hard of hearing, Deaf-Blind or speech disabled can contact DPH by dialing 711 first using specialized devices (i.e., TTY, TeleBraille, voice devices). The 711 service is free and to learn more about how it works, please visit delawarerelay.com.   

Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations. 


Ford Driving Skills For Life Teen Driver Safety Events

Dover-  Do you have a young driver in your house? Do they think they are a safe driver? Through a Ford Motor Company Driving Skills for Life Grant, The Office of Highway Safety, along with the state’s Teen Driver Task Force and other partners, will be hosting two teen driver safety events this month for parents and teens. Parents and teens will participate in several interactive stations together to build their driving relationship in a positive way. The event is open to students from all Delaware high schools regardless of event location. In addition, students will be entered into a drawing for a scholarship if they attend one of the events and complete all of the activities. A total of 6 scholarships will be randomly awarded. Three scholarships will be given away following each event. First place will be awarded $1,500, second place will be awarded $1,000 and third place will be awarded $500.

The events are scheduled for:
Saturday Sept. 19, 2015
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Sussex Technical High School
17099 County Seat Highway
Georgetown, DE 19947

Saturday Sept. 26, 2015
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
St. Marks High School
2501 Pike Creek Rd.
Wilmington, DE 19808

Each event will include two guest speakers on teen driving issues, Tim Hollister and Jennifer Macauley. Tim Hollister is a fellow parent and has become a national authority and spokesperson for safer teen driving since he lost his 17 year old son Reid in a car crash in 2006. He served on the Connecticut state taskforce that overhauled the state’s teen driver laws. He has also written a book Not So Fast: Parenting Your Teen Through the Dangers of Driving, an informative and vital guide for parents to help them understand the causes of teen crashes and head them off before their teen gets behind the wheel. Copies of Hollister’s book will be distributed to parents at both events. (http://www.nsfteendriving.com/).

The second speaker, Jennifer Macauley, was hit at an intersection in August 2004 when a large truck ran a red light (unknown cause) and struck her car on the driver’s side. She was 20 years old at the time and had just graduated from Cecil County Community College three months prior. Jen was admitted to Christiana Care’s trauma ICU for a traumatic brain injury. She was eventually transferred to Bryn Mawr rehabilitation hospital to learn to walk, talk and take care of herself again.

Additional event activities include Christiana Care’s distracted driving simulator, Smart Drive’s SIDNE Driving Simulators and Distraction and Reaction, Delaware State Police’s No Zone Truck Display, Delaware State Police’s Rollover seat belt convincer, Safe Driving Pledge Display, and information tables with Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), State Farm, and AAA.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 14-18 year olds in the U.S. There are over 33,000 licensed teen drivers in Delaware. Teen drivers account for five percent of all drivers in Delaware yet are involved in approximately 15 percent of all reportable crashes in Delaware.

The events are funded through a grant from Ford Motor Company’s teen safe driving program and supported by the state’s Teen Driver Task Force and other partners including Smart Drive, DMV, DSP, AAA Mid-Atlantic, Christiana Care, State Farm, Delaware Safety Council and Delaware Safety Driver’s Education Association of driver’s education teachers.

For more information and resources for teen drivers and the Graduated Driver License visit OHS website at www.ohs.delaware.gov/TeenDriving.shtml or visit www.teendriving.dmv.de.gov.


Task Force to Improve Planning for Students With Disabilities Prepares to Begin Work

Task Force Is Seeking Three Parents to Complete Membership

WILMINGTON, Del.– Lieutenant Governor Matt Denn, chair of the state’s newly-formed IEP Improvement Task Force, announced today that the task force membership was near completion and that the state is seeking three more parents to serve on the task force.

The task force was created by the General Assembly (Senate Concurrent Resolution 63) at the end of June to make recommendations to improve the process by which the state creates Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for students with disabilities. Lieutenant Governor Denn, who has authored legislation in prior years to address deficiencies in the IEP process, was appointed by Senate President Pro Tem Patricia Blevins to chair the task force.

The task force already has three parents with students on IEPs as members, all of whom were appointed by the Governor’s Advisory Council on Exceptional Citizens (the state council that represents the interests of children with disabilities in schools). However, the resolution creating the task force allows for three additional parents to be appointed to the task force. Those parents will be appointed by the four state legislators who are task force members.

Parents of students who are currently on IEPs – or parents of individuals who were on IEPs in the past – who are interested in serving on this task force can contact Michele Rush at the Department of Education at 302-735-4210 or michele.rush@doe.k12.de.us by Friday, August 1, 2014. The Department of Education will communicate the names of interested parents to the four legislators, who will in turn pick the three parent members.

The task force will meet once or twice a month beginning in August for a report that is due to Governor Markell and the General Assembly by January 1, 2015. Meetings will alternate between Dover and Wilmington with videoconferencing available at both sites. All meetings will be open to the public; audio and materials from all meetings will be posted on the Lt. Governor’s website.


Lt. Governor Denn Announces “Excellence in Parental Involvement” Award Winners at Press Conference

DOVER, Del. – Today, Lieutenant Governor Matt Denn announced the two schools honored with the 5th annual “Lt. Governor’s Excellence in Parental Involvement Award” during a press conference in Kent County.

The 2014 winners of the award are Postlethwait Middle and Dover High School. The two winners were picked by a committee of parents, teachers, administrators, and representatives from the business community.

“I created the award in 2010 with the State Chamber of Commerce as a way to enhance parental engagement in our schools,” said Lt. Governor Denn. “Each year, I am encouraged by the ideas that schools continue to create to help get parents more involved. As a parent, it is hard to always know everything that is happening at school, but it is our responsibility to take more active roles in supporting our children and their schools. When we do, everyone succeeds, and I applaud Postlethwait and Dover HS for creating these programs to get more parents in the doors.”

Postlethwait Middle School is doing a variety of things to get parents more involved. Throughout the year, Postlethwait hosts a variety of themed parent nights during which parents and students participate in various content-based activities. Postlethwait hosted a Fifer Fall Fest for the 2013-14 school year had over 800 participants representing 205 Postlethwait families (25% of their total student population).

“Postlethwait Middle School is very honored and proud to have been selected for this prestigious award,” said Principal Derek Prillaman. “This recognition is a true reflection of our entire learning community – many committed groups and individuals worked together to provide special programs and opportunities for our students and families throughout the school year and during the summer months. We’re committed to continuing these efforts and expanding upon our positive relationships with our parents, students and the Postlethwait community.”

Dover High School began the Parent Academy in 2012, which hosts workshops and events offered based on parent feedback. Now district-wide, more than 50 parent workshops and events have been offered district wide since August 2012. Dover High also has PACEParent and Community Engagement Center, the mission of which is to mobilize parents, schools and communities in the Capital School District towards positive change relating to parent involvement, school improvement and community engagement. From January 2013 through today, the parent center has provided services to more than 700 families.

Dover High School Principal Evelyn Edny said, “There is nothing more powerful than families being involved in the education of a student! In high school, parental involvement takes on many forms: It’s a single mom being able to provide a quiet place to study while also providing food and shelter; it’s the grandparent who can make it to a game or awards ceremony; it’s the parent who knows the first and last names of their teen’s friends; it’s the parent who works hand-and- hand communicating and partnering with the school to produce good citizens.”