Activities & Events

Conservation Kids is a day camp-like experience for students entering first grade through 12th (must have completed Kindergarten). We offer 9 weeks of themed programming while visiting multiple MVPD locations over the summer, and at least one field trip on week 10. The program meets every Wednesday June 7th-August 2nd (field trip on August 9th) with campers during summer recess to offer informal education about conservation, animal and plant diversity, natural resources, gardening, citizen science, sustainability and environmental impacts, art in nature, and community engagement.

The ultimate goal of our Conservation Kids summer program is to connect children with nature through experiential learning. This program launched with a grant by the J.W. & M.H. Straker Charitable Foundation originally in 2021 and keeps growing! All Muskingum County 1st-12th grade students are welcome (7th-12th are “Junior Naturalists” and help manage programming and younger students).

*Participant space is limited* Cost is $20 per child due on or before the first day of camp. Cash or check payments accepted. You will need to pack a lunch and we will provide snacks and water. Registration opens April 1st until May 21, 2023 or when capacity is reached. Contact Michelle at mlilling@muskingumcounty.org with any questions.

Registration is free for kids ages 8-12. There will be Stream Monitoring, Forestry Hike, Craft and Campers will learn about bees and pollinators, decomposers, native plants, and about The Conservation Kid. Lunch and a snack will be provided. Space will be limited, and registration is required by July 10, 2023.

Our plant sale has over 60 native species and (mostly) deer resistant available for 2023. We will offer Downy Sunflower, Blue Sage, Lanceleaf Coreopsis, Prairie Alumroot, Purple Coneflower, Wild Lupine, Showy Goldenrod, and MANY more!

Native species are very important to our native ecosystem and help aid in biodiversity. These plant species will make a great addition to curb appeal landscaping or pollinator friendly areas in your backyard gardens.

We will also be featuring Ohio Wormery and Supplies with Biosoil, Vermicompost, and Compost Extract Teas!!!

View fact sheets, full plant list, and request species for next year on our website under “Our Plant Sale”.

Join us on Saturday, May 6 from 10a.m. to 2p.m. to celebrate National Public Gardens Day, an annual event held to show appreciation to local public gardens within your community. Our event welcomes the fairies back to the gardens and shows appreciation for nature's growing things.

This year, our event brings back vendors to the gardens! The public can shop local nature-inspired garden arts and crafts. Enjoy the gardens casually or learn park history during a guided tour. Explore the Discovery Shed and play in Olga’s Children’s Garden. Music, art, and reading stations will be set up throughout the perennial garden. Free to attend and lunch is available.

Interested in frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders? Want to learn about the macroinvertebrates (small animals without backbones) found in streams like dragonfly larva and mayflies? Looking for some outdoor family fun? Then join Michelle Illing with the Muskingum Valley Park District and Nicole Hafer-Lipstreu, Education/Outreach Specialist with Wild at Hart Wildlife Rehabilitation on Saturday, April 29th, at 2pm at McGraw Edison Recreation Area. We will be exploring the vernal pools, stream, and pond in search of the many amphibians that call the park home.

Event is rain or shine. Please wear waterproof gear. You are welcome to bring a small container and a net to observe the critters we find. Limited supplies are available to use. Free to attend.

Join the Muskingum Valley Park District for a seed stratification workshop and become Mother Nature's Apprentice! This workshop will teach participants how to stratify seeds (what nature provides to start germination), when and how to sow the seeds, and ways to grow and plant healthy native species in your landscape. Each participant will receive one type of plant species to take home and nurture until planting in the spring with an option to buy additional species. You will learn from MVPD Volunteer and Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist, Gail Smith. Gail has helped stratify, grow, and plant MANY of the plants you see at Mission Oaks Gardens and Gale Garden. She puts in hundreds of volunteer hours every year.

Bring any plant related questions with you to this workshop! Become Mother Nature's Apprentice on Saturday, February 4th from 10:00 A.M.-Noon. You MUST register by January 31st to reserve your spot. Cost is $10 for one person and one plant species. Additional species can be purchased for $5 each. Make checks payable to ''Mission Oaks Gardens''. Cash, checks, and cards accepted at the door. Prepaid payment is appreciated, but not required. Send payments to 1720 Euclid Ave, Zanesville, Ohio 43701 or call Michelle at 740-455-8237 to make an appointment to pay in person.

The event will have hot dogs, s’mores, hot chocolate, and cider provided for donation. Kingdom Coffee will have coffee for purchase from their wagon. The community will have the option to purchase a special Westview holiday tumbler sponsored by The Community Bank for their drinks, and stainless-steel Westview tree ornaments will also be available to purchase. The Muskingum County Library System will have a craft station for families. The Muskingum County Literacy Council will have Flashlight Storytime. David and Truman Tarbert will provide music. We will have history lesson about the timeline from Westview Elementary to Muskingum Valley Park District. A tree lighting ceremony will commence the main events at 5:00pm on December 10th.

4 to 7 p.m. Music, Crafts, Food, and Fellowship
5 p.m. Tree Lighting Ceremony and “Deck the Halls”
5:15 p.m. Flashlight Storytime, history tent, and music continues until 7 p.m.

Westview Community Park is located at 2256 Dresden Road, Zanesville, Ohio 43701. Seasonal decorations will be displayed from November 27, 2022-January 17, 2023.

We are creating an escape room at Mission Oaks Gardens in mid-October through mid-November. This adventure will take you to a house in the woods looking for an antidote for a Death Cap mushroom poisoning. Will you follow the clues to solve puzzles and get the antidote in time?! Dates to be determined, but several times and days will be offered. Family-friendly. Max group of 5. Recommended Age 10+. Price is $30 per group of 5. Registration is required!

Make A Difference Day with Muskingum Valley Park District! Please consider volunteering your time with us on October 22 at McGraw Edison Recreation Area. We will be focusing on fall prairie planting and invasive species removal. Thank you for your interest in making a difference with MVPD! Held annually on the fourth Saturday in October.

Canceled
Join us for a Mystery Dinner Party at Pizza Cottage! Guests will step back into New York City's Little Italy during late 1940's to unravel the murder of Giuseppe (Pepi) Roni at the family owned restaurant. Tickets are $30.

Join us for our “Piece of the Park” Plant Sale on Saturday, October 15th at Mission Oaks Gardens from 10am until 2pm. Our plants this year are 20 native and (mostly) deer resistant species. Native species are very important to our native ecosystem. These plant species will make a great addition to curb appeal landscaping and pollinator areas in your backyard gardens when they bloom next spring and summer.

Our annual Trail of Treats event at Collegial Woods Trails is held the second Saturday in October. This event is a family-friendly Trick-or-Treat with local vendors. Wear your costume and visit the booths for treats! The public can vote for their favorite BOOth! Food, prizes, and treats! If you or your business is interested in setting up as a vendor, sign up by clicking the link below.

Join us for Performing Arts in the Parks Series! Reading, art, music AND theater!

This event offers a read-along with free books offered by the Muskingum County Literacy Council. A musical area and art table make-and-take. Family fun. Free to attend.

Enjoy the beauty of Mission Oaks Gardens including our Perennial Garden with a Fairy Garden. Our Conifer Garden has a gorgeous collection of Conifers and a pond with a waterfall feature. Explore Olga's Children's Garden for fun games and nature play area.

A Theater in the Park Presentation by Homegrown Players. Live show at 7pm at Westview Community Park. Part of our Performing Arts in the Parks series. Free. Bring a chair or blanket.

Conservation Kids summer program returning June 2022. Email Michelle at mlilling@muskingumcounty.org for information. Details and registration available in April.

Join us at Mission Oaks Gardens at 8:45pm to celebrate National Moth Week! We will have a setup to help us attract moths and conduct a survey. Participants will receive a Moth field guide by ODNR while supplies last. National Moth Week is a global citizen citizen event celebrated annually the last full week of July.

Join us for our “Piece of the Park” Plant Sale on Saturday, May 7th at Mission Oaks Gardens from 10am until 2pm. We will be celebrating National Public Gardens Day with events in the gardens AND welcoming the garden fairies back from Florida! Our plants this year are 20 native and (mostly) deer resistant species such as Wild Bergamot, Virginia Bluebells, Rattlesnake Master, Jacob's Ladder, Tall Sunflower, and Goldenrod. Native species are very important to our native ecosystem. These plant species will make a great addition to curb appeal landscaping and pollinator areas in your backyard gardens.

Interested in frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders? Want to learn about the macroinvertebrates (small animals without backbones) found in streams like dragonfly larva and mayflies? Looking for some outdoor family fun? Then join Michelle Illing with the Muskingum Valley Park District and Nicole Hafer-Lipstreu, Education/Outreach Specialist with Wild at Hart Wildlife Rehabilitation on Saturday, April 30th, at 2pm at McGraw Edison Recreation Area. We will be exploring the vernal pools, stream, and pond in search of the many amphibians that call the park home. Event is rain or shine. Please wear waterproof gear. You are welcome to bring a small container and a net to observe the critters we find. Limited supplies are available to use. Free to attend.

Mushroom Hunting Talk & Walk will be on Saturday, April 23rd at 1pm at Collegial Woods Trails. This is a free event hosted by the Muskingum County Library System. More details to come.

Brought to you by the Muskingum Valley Park District, Muskingum Soil & Water Conservation District, and Muskingum County Library System. Bring your camera and take pictures of the scenery while you learn about the flora and fauna of the cold winter months. This event is free for the whole family.

Join the Muskingum Valley Park District for Fall into Fitness! Earn points for every event, every mile, and every business selfie! Track points Sept 18-Oct 31!

Register

The City of Zanesville, Visit Zanesville, and the Muskingum Valley Park District present the Y-City Scarecrow Contest! During the month of October, all scarecrows will be on display on Fifth & Main Streets in Downtown Zanesville, and at Mission Oaks Gardens.

Vote on your favorite scarecrow daily throughout the month of October on www.visitzanesville.com. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners will receive prizes including Zanesville swag, gift cards and a free rental in the Mission Oaks Gardens Visitor's Center.

Make A Difference Day with Muskingum Valley Park District! Please consider volunteering your time with us on October 23 at Collegial Woods Trails. We will be focusing on trail maintenance on the natural surface trails, including gravel placement and invasive species removal. Thank you for your interest in making a difference with MVPD!

Fall into Reading with Muskingum Valley Park District and the Muskingum County Literacy Council at Mission Oaks Gardens on Thursday, October 14th, starting at 5:00pm! We will have a rotation of fun activities including a Book Read Aloud with Cindy Lawyer, Arts & Crafts, Garden Tour, and more! Free, family-friendly event.

Join Muskingum Valley Park District at Collegial Woods Trails on Saturday, October 9, 2021 from 5:oo-7:00pm for a thrilling Trick-or-Treat style event brought to you by MVPD and area organizations. Wear your costume, bring your candy collector bag, and walk the TRAIL OF TREATS! FREE, family-friendly event. Vendor booth contest! If you are an area business that would like to set up a table, please CONTACT US for the registration link!