Ansonia Nature Center Offers Facebook Programs

Today is Open House Day

There are lots of interesting places to visit throughout the state today!

Here in the Valley there will be open houses at the Derby Historical Society's Gen. David Humphreys House in Ansonia and the Osborne Homestead Museum in Derby.

Check out this site for more information. 

New Haven Land Trust to hold benefit

Bus tour, happy hour on tap
NEW HAVEN - The New Haven Land Trust is offering a fun and festive benefit bus tour Oct. 6 to celebrate the beauty and bounty of its community gardens and nature preserves.

Culminating in a party at Westville’s new farm-to-table dining hotspot, this spirited event will support land conservation, community gardening, and environmental education programs.

The event is called Habitat, Harvest, and Happy Hour.
The bus tour departs at 4:30 p.m. from the Stone Hearth restaurant, 838 Whalley Ave., with a party to follow at the restaurant.

The event features a ride in a coach bus with stops at Land Trust community gardens and nature preserves. 
Guests will see hidden New Haven environmental gems -- from marshes and woods at the edges of the city to expansive gardens within urban neighborhoods. A guide at each stop will share the location's story—its history, the people involved and other tidbits that make it special.

Capping off the evening is a cocktail party at Stone Hearth, a new Westville restaurant popular with the sustainable food crowd for its creative preparations of locally-grown food. 
Party-goers will enjoy beer and wine and a variety of fresh seasonal appetizers, including some made with produce from Land Trust gardens. 
To showcase the harvest, Stone Hearth will also have live cooking demonstrations.

The New Haven Land Trust will also honor outdoor outfitters Trailblazer with the Environmental Business Award. 
This award recognizes the locally-owned store's longstanding commitment to preserving and protecting the environment, including its support of osprey nesting platforms at the Land Trust’s preserves.

Tickets may be purchased online at NHLT-HappyHour.Eventbrite.com for $50 per person, $85 per couple. 
Admission includes the tour, party, and food and drink. Money raised will go directly into Land Trust programs that protect open spaces and fragile ecosystems, offer educational events on environmental topics, and make it possible for thousands of people in New Haven to reap the benefits of community gardening. They include access to affordable, nutrient-rich food, connecting with neighbors, increased safety, and physical activity.

Habitat, Harvest, and Happy Hour is made possible by supporting sponsors The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven and Trailblazer, and event sponsors Grillo Services, NewAlliance Foundation, Suzio-York Hill, United Way of Greater New Haven, Yale-New Haven Hospital, and Yale University.

For information, contact Catherine Bradshaw at Catherine.Bradshaw@NewHavenLandTrust.org.


This post is taken from a press release from New Haven Land Trust. 
 

Ansonia Nature Center to host nature education day

ANSONIA - The Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center and the friends of the late educator John Adzima will host a day of nature study Monday, July 1.

The day will honor Adzima's memory and his love for nature and young children.
On this special day, Ansonia Public School Pre-Kindergartners and Redwing Pond House preschool students will learn about Redwing Pond and the inch by inch Children's Garden in the park.

For more information call the nature center, 203-736-1053.




This post is taken from a press release.

Center plans nature study day in June

To honor late educator's love of nature
ANSONIA -The Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center and friends of the late John Adzima will host a day of nature study in June at the center, 10 Deerfield Road.

Director Donna Lindgren said after several brainstorming sessions it was decided that Ansonia preschoolers will honor Adzima's memory and his love for nature and young children.

The planning committee meets regularly to organize this day for Ansonia Public Schools' Pre-K and Redwing Pond House students who will learn about Redwing Pond and the inch by inch Children's Gardens in the park.

Adults interested in helping with the program, through donations or participation, are asked to call Lindgren for information at 203-736-1053.
The next meeting of the planning committee is scheduled for 10 a.m. April  2.

Learn about groundhogs at Ansonia nature center

ANSONIA - The Nature's Child series of programs continues at 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center with Groundhog Day festivities. Groundhog Day is Feb. 2.


If groundhogs in Connecticut could talk, they'd ask why people are waking up their relative in Pennsylvania!
Learn about their sleeping habits and hear a short story, make a craft, and walk to their den site.

Tuition is $6 per family ($4 for Ansonia residents or current family-level Friends of the Ansonia Nature Center, Inc. members).

Register in advance by calling 203-736-1053.
The nature center is at 10 Deerfield Road.

Nature center to hold Connecticut Trails Day hike

 ANSONIA - The Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center and the Connecticut Forest and Park Association are sponsoring a free educational hike to identify trees by their bark from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, rain or shine.
    Saturday is Connecticut Trails Day.
    WalkCT Family Guides Peter and Barbara Rzasa will lead hikers on a two-mile journey through the nature center’s woodland trails, which include a large variety of hardwoods and softwoods.
    The traits most often used to describe tree species - leaves, buds, and twigs- are often not clearly visible or seasonally absent. However, bark is a tree characteristic that is visible in every season.
    Participants will learn about a system for classifying bark characteristics into different types , and for using bark to identify species.
    Hikers will begin to discover why such a variety of bark characteristics exists - and why some species have smooth bark, while on others it is thick and broken. Participants will learn different patterns in bark as trees age.
    This hike is open to naturalists at all levels of experience. Hikers are asked to meet at 8:45 a.m. at the nature center, 10 Deerfield Road, and to bring water and insect protection.
    For information and to register, call the nature center, 203-736-1053.

Program brings special needs children closer to nature

Gone fishin' at Colony Pond in Ansonia

 

Kyle Scarpulla, 10, of West Haven, fishes Saturday at Colony Pond in Ansonia. Assisting him is Jordan Hamuka, 14, of Naugatuck, a junior ranger at the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center. Patricia Villers/Register

ANSONIA - A group of special needs children and their families spent Saturday morning having a fine time fishing at Colony Pond.
They were taking part in a program co-sponsored by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center, and the Connecticut Aquatic Resources Education Program, said Martin Wigglesworth of Ansonia.
Wigglesworth is a park ranger at the nature center.
The children are members of a West Haven-based group called The Children with Special Needs Program, said Karen Muro, project coordinator. She said families do not have to be West Haven residents to join the group.  
She said the children regularly participate in activities such as bowling, karate, and fitness classes. They also are planning trips to Lake Compounce in Bristol and a Bluefish baseball game in Bridgeport, among other activities this summer.



Their visit Saturday to Colony Pond in Ansonia was a first. Assisting Wigglesworth with the fishing supervision were Ansonia residents Russ Zelanin and Dave Connelly. "To watch these kids (enjoying themselves) is just awesome," Wigglesworth said, smiling broadly.

Viola Waldo of West Haven, whose grandson Kyle Scarpulla, 10, was one of the children who was clearly enjoying Saturday's fishing trip, said that being in nature relaxes him. She has started a Facebook page, and has dedicated it to Kyle.

My husband and I were moved to see that something as simple as catching and releasing fish at a local pond could have such a positive impact on children with special needs.

Nature center schedules summer vacation days

ANSONIA - Calling all adolescents ages 11-14  to this week, June 26-29, which is dedicated to earth and nature-based science and adventure program taught by Alison Rubelmann. 

Daily hikes and exploration are planned to learn about the park's wild plants and animals. Participants should expect to harvest, forage, and prepare a wild meal as part of learning survival skills.

The class will meet from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for the four-day session. 

Class size is limited for this popular program; register in person with a parent or legal guardian as soon as possible. 
Tuition is $120 ($95 for Ansonia residents and family-level Friends of the Ansonia Nature Center, Inc. members). Checks should be made payable to the Ansonia Nature Center.

Summer nature days at the Redwing Pond House

There are still openings for Summer Nature Days at the Redwing Pond House for children ages three to five.

One-week sessions will be held Monday-Friday from July 9-Aug. 3.  Classes are held from 8:30-11:30 a.m.

Children should bring a snack and be prepared to go outdoors.
Tuition is $125 per week ($100 for Ansonia residents and family-level F.A.N.C.I. members). 

Checks should be made payable to the Friends of the Ansonia Nature Center.

Summer nature days for six-to 10-year olds 
There are still openings for children ages six-10. This summer's theme is Earth Education and the program is designed for children who love the outdoors and wildlife. 

Classes will be held July 24 - Aug. 17, Tuesday-Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Call 203-736-1053 for information on any of the programs.

This information is from a press release from the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center.