Sponsors Wanted! 5th Annual Rain Beat on Main Street Coming in 202

2024 will mark the 5th year that art and conservation come together forAshland Soil and Water Conservation District’s (SWCD) Rain Beat on Main Street event. The program has grown in popularity and support every year, and Ashland SWCD expects no less for the program’s 5th anniversary.

That’s why the district is on the hunt for local business and community groups to sponsor rain barrels for the event. Local artists  then transform the standard, urn-shaped rain barrels into one-of-a-kind works of art before each barrel is auctioned off to the public. In the last give years, over 80 rain barrels have been sponsored, painted and auctioned off with the proceeds going to stormwater outreach and education programs in Ashland County.

“Since 2020, the Rain Beat on Main Street event has been such a fun experience, and we were so excited to have so much interest and involvement from local community members and businesses,” said Jane Houin, Ashland SWCD director. “This year, we’re hoping to continue to grow the event and continue to generate excitement about stormwater education.”

This year’s even will take place June 18-25 in Loudonville’s Central Park, with barrels moving to the Ashland Balloonfest and Freer Field from June 26-July 1 and wrapping up with a display in Ashland’s Corner Park July 2-8.

Rain barrels for the event are sponsored by local businesses, and then the SWCD staff connect those sponsored barrels with local artists. The barrels get primed, painted and sealed by the artists, then are displayed at the Rain Beat on Main Street events throughout the county.

While the rain barrels on on display, an online auction will be taking place where community members can bid on their favorite rain barrels. The proceeds from the auction are used for stormwater education events in the county. So far, the Rain Beat on Main Street program has generated over $13,000 in sales. Those proceeds have been used to the purchase of a stormwater management learning and community engagement game and host educational events on precipitation monitoring, ice river spotting, rain garden workshops, and three rain barrel workshops.

“We have so many talented artists in Ashland County that have created beautiful variety of rain barrels that were created, from larger than life parrots in the rain forest and honeybee skeps to African sunsets to rolling farm fields, each of the rain barrels was a unique work of art and the response to them was phenomenal,” Houin said. (CLICK HERE FOR EXAMPLES OF PAST BARRELS)

Local businesses and community organizations who are interested in sponsoring a rain barrel can contact Ruth McCrea, Ashland SWCD outreach specialist at 419-281-7645 or at rmccrea@ashlandcounty.org for more information. Sponsorship of a barrel is $150 or is included in a platinum level affiliate membership for $300. Barrel sponsors can choose an artist they know or can have their artist secured by SWCD staff.

The district is also looking for more local artists as well for 2024. More information can be found at www.ashlandswcd.com