Fannie Gibbs of Macedonia Community Foundation, left, and Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman paddle a boat at Reed Bingham State Park during Junteenth 2020.  Submitted photo

WWALS has been operating since June 2012 when individuals from Lowndes County and Tift County joined with concerns of water problems, according to John S. Quarterman, Suwannee Riverkeeper, in an interview Thursday.

Quarterman said WWALS’s mission is to advocate for conservation and stewardship of the surface waters and groundwater of the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary, in south Georgia and north Florida, among them the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Little, Santa Fe, and Suwannee River watersheds, through education, awareness, environmental monitoring and citizen activities.

The 10,000-square-mile WWALS territory includes the Suwannee River from the Okefenokee Swamp to the Gulf of Mexico, plus the Suwannee River Estuary, and tributaries such as the Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers as far north as Cordele in Georgia, as well as parts of the Floridan Aquifer, which is the primary water source for drinking, agriculture, and industry for millions of Georgia and Florida residents.

They plan to further their outreach with the WWALS Webinars series that is scheduled to begin on Thursday, Jan. 11, from noon to 1 p.m. in virtual meetings. Potential attendees should register in advance for the virtual meeting through the Zoom link, which is also available on the WWALS Facebook page.

Fannie Marie Jackson Gibbs, of Brooks County, will serve as first speaker in the series. She has been long active in issues near the Little and Withlacoochee rivers, especially involving African-American family history. She became involved with WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. because of her advocacy on social issues and social media presence.

“I’m honored to have worked with Fannie for many years, and I hope you will all zoom in to hear what she has to say,” Quarterman said. He explained that the planning of the webinar series began after hearing Gibbs speak at a previous WWALS Watershed Coalition event.

“We thank Fannie Gibbs for speaking at WWALS River Revue 2023 in September, and we welcome her back to speak longer in this first WWALS Webinar,” WWALS President Sara Jay Jones said in a statement.

Gibbs looks forward to speaking about topics ranging from ongoing sewage problems in Quitman, the annual Juneteenth celebrations she organizes at Reed Bingham State Park Lake where WWALS brings boats, family history and her spearheading efforts to preserve African and Native American history through The Macedonia Community Foundation, Inc.

“I feel that WWALS has led me on a path of healing and regenerative living by what they are doing and what they’ve exposed me to with their love of the water, protecting nature and protecting us because to me water is the bread of life,” Gibbs said.

Quarterman said WWALS depends on its volunteers to operate and is accepting new volunteers at this time.

The remaining speaker line-up will be announced as the series progresses.

Interested community members should contact WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. (WWALS) through phone at 850-290-2350 or 229-242-0102, email at wwalswatershed@gmail.com or its Facebook page.