Volume 17: The Mighty Perky Gets Robbed of Best River Honors
Our little creek came so close to the top prize.
Greetings River People Readers and apologies for the late newsletter,
Maybe I have some disaster-induced version of Stockholm Syndrome or maybe I’m just a glutton for punishment, but I really wanted to the Perkiomen Creek to win the Pennsylvania’s 2023 River of the Year award, a coveted award that has gone to prestigious waterways such as the Youghiogheny, Kiskiminitas-Conemaugh and, of course, the Lackawanna River.
The Pennsylvania Organization for Watershed and Rivers (POWR to those in biz) has been administering the River of the Year program since 1983. And for what reason? So towns, boroughs, cities and villages (looking at you St. Peter’s) can brag about how their waterway is bigger and better than yours? A little bit, sure. But also because, as POWR puts:
“Pennsylvania’s River of the Year is an honor designed to elevate public awareness of specific rivers and recognize important conservation needs and achievements.”
$10K for River Activities?!
And by elevating public awareness and recognizing those needs and achievements, POWR means doling out a $10,000 leadership grant to help fund the winner’s River of the Year activities.
This year, the Mighty Perky made it all the way to the Final Four of a contest that Dick Vitale himself has called “the most exciting competition on the f$cking planet, baby!”
In addition to the Perk, the only “creek” in running for ROY honors, the Conestoga, the Schuylkill and the North Branch of the Susquehanna made it to the big stage.
Unfortunately, our beloved Perkiomen didn’t take the top prize. That went to that overhyped North Branch of the Susquehanna. Here’s an idea, Sus: Have the balls to let your waterway stand on its own instead of hiding behind these cute little North and West Branches to rack up more awards. Yeah, we’re onto you, you callous, cutthroat, calculating SOB, you.
In terms of breakdown, here’s how the voting went:
North Branch of the Susquehanna (4,098 votes)
Conestoga River (2,490 votes)
Perkiomen Creek (3,110 votes), and
the Schuylkill River (a mere 1,740 votes).
Like Amy Adams says after the Oscars each year, “it’s an honor just to be nominated.” At least, we beat out the Schuylkill. Losing out to a river 99% of the state’s population can’t even spell would’ve been an embarrassment.
Hey, there’s always next year.
Hat tip to Wendy Toth for letting me know about this competition in the first place. And if you’re looking for career advice, hit Wendy up. That’s kind of her thing — and she’s amazing at it.
As always, feel free to leave your feedback and questions in the comments section (or in any post) or email me directly at jrdbilski@gmail. Finally, if you’re enjoying what you read, consider sharing with others using either of buttons below my signature.
Til Next Time,
Jared