HUNTER ARMY AIRFIELD, Ga. - Long-time storyteller, swamp dweller, and musician-- Okefenokee Joe-- got the full attention of parents and children at the Hunter Theater July 10 as he held up four large snakes from the stage, explaining the characteristics of each.
Tom Jenkins, Balfour Beatty Communities community manager at Hunter Army Airfield, invited the legendary performer to the installation to entertain Army Families and to give them a deeper understanding, respect and appreciation of the importance of environmental stewardship.
"Sustaining the environment is an important issue to us," said Amber Humphries, Balfour Beatty Community Lifeworks coordinator, who said her company is always looking for ways to embed sustainable thinking and practices throughout the business and the communities they serve.
"Okefenokee Joe taught all of us something about sharing the planet and also about appreciating all creatures and the part they play in the environment."
The tall, soft-spoken teacher began his performance with self-written songs and stories about black bears and alligators he's encountered during the 10 years he lived in the Okefenokee Swamp, stressing the role they play in a healthy environment.
"There's no hate among animals," he said, adding that much of the fear we have about animals is unfounded. "Snakes can be a benefit in areas because they eat rats and mice for food," he said. "Every living thing is designed to do its job -- they have been living and dying on earth for billions of years, doing their part to keep this earth going.
"We can learn a lot from God's creatures," he continued. "They only kill for food. They live the rule of nature -- if you don't need it, leave it."
Jennifer Holcomb brought her nine-year-old daughter, Shannon, and her four-year old son, Aiden, to see learn something about the environment.
"I don't know much about creatures in this climate," Jennifer said, explaining that she recently moved to Hunter from New York. "I liked learning about snakes. They're not all poisonous and they all have a function."
Her daughter, Shannon, said she liked the snakes too but when Okefenokee Joe first brought them out on stage, she was afraid someone would get bitten and have to go to the hospital.
But her fears subsided after she learned more about snakes. Both Shannon and her brother joined several children and adults at the stage after the presentation to hold or pet a rat snake.
"I can't believe it," their mother said. "Aiden is normally afraid of bugs. This has been very educational for all of us."
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