It's all about taking care of our environment.

That was the central message relayed by Dan Kunkle, executive director of the Lehigh Gap Nature Center, to students at St. John Neumann Regional School.Kunkle visited the school's Palmerton campus Jan. 28 as part of Catholic Schools Week 2015, the theme of which was Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service."It's always good to be here," Kunkle told the students. "It's great to be back."Kunkle said the program was designed specifically for the students and was on the topic of extinction."Extinction is forever, and extinction is very important to contemplate," he said. "Extinction is a natural process; things die off, and other things replace them."Kunkle noted that elk, bison, gray wolf, cougars, fisher, river otter, beaver and lynx were all native to Pennsylvania.Kunkle said that fortunately, elk, fishers, river otters and beavers have all returned to Penn's Woods."If we give nature a chance, it can come back," he said. "I an afraid that people are not caring about taking care of the environment."After his presentation, Kunkle gave the students a passenger pigeon to put together.Many students expressed their enthusiasm for the program.Fifth-grader Caitlyn Kratzer said Kunkle was nice and taught the students about animals and extinction.Fellow fifth-grader Charlotte Vinson expounded on her classmates' thoughts."He taught us a lot about what we should be doing for the environment, and how if we don't animals could go extinct," Charlotte said.Fifth-grader Shannon Dougherty said she, too, found the program to be beneficial."I learned a lot about extinct animals," Shannon said. "I learned a lot of stuff that I didn't even know existed."Other students, such as fifth-grader Dana Delorey, spoke highly of the school."I was a new student last year, and everybody was so helpful," Dana said. "They really care, and all the teachers are very nice."All week long, students at the school's Palmerton and Slatington campuses observed Catholic Schools Week, the theme of which was Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.Pupils in kindergarten through third grade attend the school's Slatington campus, while students in grades four through eight attend the Palmerton campus.To arrange a tour of the school, call the Slatington campus at 610-787-2935 or the Palmerton campus at 610-826-2354.For more information, visit

www.sjnrschool.org.