Sunday, October 31, FENCE will host its annual Kids @ FENCE Fall Festival from 1 to 5 p.m. The event will include carnival games, treats, a rock climbing wall, a giant slide, a maze, a parent resource center, the Polk County Sheriffs Office will conduct a hands-on demonstration of the dangers of texting while driving, sponsored by Carolina Golf Cars, a fire safety presentation with the smoke house and costume contests throughout the day. Free family events at FENCE are made possible by a grant from the Kirby Fund at the Polk County Community Foundation.

The FENCE board of directors and staff have worked for 26 years to fulfill its mission to provide facilities and focus for education, recreation and preservation in nature studies and equestrian activities with the aim of enhancing these endeavors to enrich the quality of life for the community.

One of the ways in which FENCE fulfills its mission is through its primary community outreach program, Project FENCE (Friends Enjoying Nature Chemistry and the Environment). This nature and science education component was created several years ago to reach elementary school students in Polk County.

Because of the high success of and interest in the project, Project FENCE has expanded its scope to Rutherford, Henderson, Spartanburg and Greenville counties. During 2009-2010, 9,900 students participated in the education programs.

Each program FENCE offers is a two part series. The first section brings FENCE to the classroom. Project FENCEs education coordinator arrives at the classroom with education boxes to provide an hour of curriculum based lessons in one aspect of the sciences. Each presentation is a hands-on learning experience for the students and has been created to meet all North and South Carolina curriculum guidelines.

The second part of each lesson is held at FENCE. Lessons shared in the classroom are brought to life on the property through hikes on the trails, around the 2 acre pond and hands-on sessions in the nature classrooms.

Project FENCE encourages a diverse array of people by marketing to all public, private, parochial and home school children in the region to attend their sessions. No one is charged to attend a Project FENCE program, even though organizers estimate a per student cost of $3. FENCE fundraising, events, grants and sponsors ensure that no student will be denied the opportunity to learn about environmental concerns, stewardship and growth management of FENCEs pristine natural properties.

One of the primary objectives of Project FENCE is to offer science education to students from kindergarten through high school. Attracting students from year to year and building on the lessons from years past is important in building a long lasting interest in our environment and maybe, produce some budding scientists and thinkers. A second objective of Project FENCE is to teach young people about their responsibilities to the world around them.

For more information or tickets to the Kids @ FENCE Fall Festival, contact FENCE at 828-859-9021 or www.fence.org.