Adults from left to right: Buda Elementary Principal Charla Salmeron, HCISD Director of Facilities/New Construction Rod Walls, teacher and grant recipient Kim Crow, Rainwater Revival organizer Karen Ford, and Assistant Principal Soor-el Puga. This children are Buda Elementary fourth- and fifth- graders in the after-school club Green Team. PHOTO via HAYS COUNTY

STAFF REPORT

A free rainwater-themed festival, to be held in Dripping Springs on Oct. 8, will feature activities including live music, exhibits, vendors, food, a rain barrel auction, a panel discussion, and lecturers.

The second annual Rainwater Revival, co-sponsored by the Hill Country Alliance, Hays County and other water-conscious businesses and organizations, will be from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Roger Hanks Park.

A $25 home catchment systems tour will be at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 9, starting at The Preserve at Walnut Springs. The tour includes an optional $10 brown bag lunch from Thyme & Dough that can be ordered by October 1.

Rainwater Revival lecture topics will include Rainwater Harvesting 101, Designing and Building for Rainwater, the Water/Energy Nexus, Installing your Own System, and Making Your Own Rain Barrels. State Rep. Doug Miller and representatives from two key state agencies will provide an update on rainwater-related legislation and initiatives.

“We’ve got a great roster of speakers to learn from in between visiting vendor booths and exhibits, listening to music and enjoying food and drink, including rainwater,” said Rainwater Revival organizer Karen Ford, a Hays County marketing executive and former Pct. 4 county commissioner. “I think people will be fascinated by J. David Bamberger, founder of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve, who took degraded ranch land and restored it beautifully. His presentation, entitled ‘Holding Water on the Land’ should interest anyone with a large piece of property or a small yard.”

Attendees will also hear and learn from a panel of homeowners, who revival organizers say live comfortably and completely on collected rainwater.

“It surprises people to learn how far a little rain can go in filling up a collection system,” Ford said. “Many people who live entirely on rainwater have had to purchase little or no supplemental water through recent droughts.”

The event’s art barrel auction will feature the sale of six rain barrels professionally designed and painted by area artists. Proceeds from the auction will be used for rainwater-related projects at Hill Country area schools. After the auction, the Rainwater Revival Grants Committee will offer grant applications to schools throughout the Hill Country, Ford said.

The rain barrel auction will begin at 5 p.m., though there is a “buy now” option on the website for enthusiasts who can’t wait.

“We’re gratified that once again area artists have donated their time and talent to creating stunning artwork on rain barrels,” Ford said. “The 2010 auction of these works of art provided three grants for schools in Hays County so that school children could learn about the importance of rainwater in our ecosystem – lessons based on their teachers’ innovative projects that children can build on throughout life.”

Last year’s bidding raised $4,500 for Hays County elementary school projects. On September 15, the grants committee presented $1,500 grant checks to each of three Hays Consolidated ISD elementary schools – Blanco Vista, Buda and Tobias. Teachers at the schools had proposed projects to teach students about water conservation and rainwater collection.

The Oct. 9 rainwater catchment tour will feature five homes with systems exhibiting a variety of applications, histories and designs. The catchment systems serve three- to nine-bedroom homes that use rainwater for all or part of their drinking, landscaping and swimming pool needs.

All profit from the tour will be donated to a fund established for the minor children of Jerry Morton, who worked in the rainwater harvesting industry and supported the inaugural Rainwater Revival. Morton was killed in an accident last year, leaving his mother to care for his three children, one of whom is confined to a wheelchair. Rainwater Revival co-sponsor The Preserve at Walnut Springs will donating the buses and tour refreshments.