Webb City will be the featured attraction in a documentary that will have its premiere here soon, along with the people who got together and began to transform some of the abandoned land left behind after mining in the area ended.
Tickets for the June 4 screening of the documentary, “Cardinal Valley: A Restoration Story,” are on sale now at the Route 66 Movie Theater in Webb City.
The production took several years and covers the process the city, along with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, devised to restore sections of the prairie. By producing their owncompost and applying it to the land, they are building back a functioning soil.
All this takes time and so does making a documentary, right down to finding the music that will fit in as part of the score. “We were very fortunate to be introduced to musician, Nick Gazca, from Jeff City. His recordings work so well with the film,” said producer, Meredith Ludwig. With a little over a week till the first screening, “Sweet Potato Studio” is humming. The basement workspace doubles as storage for garden produce.
A guided walk through a portion of Cardinal Valley Habitat will precede the premiere, which will be followed by a question-and-answer session and reception.
4:00 – 5:30 PM – Wildflower Walk with John Nichols, Habitat RestorationManager, starting at Mineral Prairie on Ware Street, a quarter mile east of Railroad Way. Look for the signs.
6:30 PM – Premiere screening of Cardinal Valley: A Restoration Story, followed by a Question & Answer session and time to share stories from the “chats.” Location: Route 66 Movie Theater, 24 S. Main Street, Webb City.
8:00 PM – Reception to follow at Somewhere in Time Bookshop, 29 S. Main Street, Webb City, MO