Friends of ZNC
History
The Zion Nature Center was created through the cooperative efforts of the Zionsville Parks and Recreation Board and a committed group of volunteers, the Friends of the Zion Nature Center. With the goal of "bringing the experience of nature within reach," these groups worked together to create a place where adults and children, nature lovers and novices, can learn about and appreciate the natural world all around us. The center was established in 2001 and is located in the building formerly housing the administrative offices of the Zionsville Community Schools.
The Friends of the Zion Nature Center
John Thieme - President
Nancy Tikijian - Vice President
Ted Soliday - Secretary
Elizabeth Mueller - Treasurer
Kirsten Wujek - Newsletter
Carol Suico - Member
Therese Burkhard - Naturalist
Special Thanks To The Following Friends of the ZNC
Kappa Kappa Kappa (Zeta Sigma Chapter) of Zionsville generously funded a grant written by Lauren Smith and Therese Burkhard for the purchase of four Konus Academy microscopes and educational slides for the Friends of the Zion Nature Center. The microscopes were used throughout Biologist Boot Camp 2010 to introduce campers to the microscopic life that surrounds them. The microscopes will be used throughout future years for camps, school and scout groups, and public programming.
Left Picture: Bronwyn Campbell, Kendall Fahey, and Nathaniel Martine explore microscopic pond life at Biologist Boot Camp 2010. Right Picture: Elizabeth Martine enjoys one of the microscopes purchased through a grant from Kappa Kappa Kappa of Zionsville.
The Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society (INPAWS) generously funded a grant written by Lauren Smith for the Friends of the Zion Nature Center. The grant supported two educational gardens on Nature Center grounds: a Children's Butterfly Garden and a Woodland Restoration Garden. The restoration is part of our larger "R & R" mission that aims to Remove invasive plant species and Restore native plants around the Nature Center. In an evening "Green-Up" program on May 4th, volunteers helped to remove exotic invasive purple winter creeper and bush honeysuckle from the woodland. The invasives were then replaced with native woodland plants purchased through the INPAWS grant.
Left Picture: Lauren Smith introduces Nature Navigators Campers to a paw-paw tree in the Woodland Restoration Garden funded by INPAWS. Campers learned about how these native plants provide food and shelter for local wildlife that exotic plants cannot provide. Right Picture: Volunteers Brett Conaway and Ted Soliday pull invasive purple winter creeper (Euonymus fortunei) from the woodland. The winter creeper was later replaced with native wild ginger donated by Elizabeth Mueller and Nancy Tikijian.
The Village Garden Club of Zionsville awarded Lauren Smith (Ecology PhD student at IU Bloomington and part time naturalist at Zion Nature Center) a grant of $250 to help provide materials for a Sustainable Wildlife Garden at the Zion Nature Center. The interpretive garden was planted with native Indiana plants that attract wildlife such as butterflies, bees and birds. A beautiful rain barrel acts a centerpiece as well as a useful educational exhibit for nature center visitors.
The Community Foundation of Boone County for the contribution of $300 that they awarded the center through the "2009 Art, Music & Theater Creativity Grant." We were able to purchase 15 high quality puppets for the center that will be used for years to come.
Kiwanis Club of Zionsville generously sponsors Zion Nature Center's "Creature Features," which feature guest speakers with live animals. Kiwanis Club President Carol Gobeyn (right) presents Friends of Zion Nature Center President John Thieme (left) with a $1,000 check for 2010 programs.
Kendall Fahey celebrated her 9th birthday and requested donations to the Zion Nature Center in lieu of gifts for herself. Kendall lives in Carmel but the Zion Nature Center is one of her favorite places in Zionsville. Through her generosity, the nature center received cleaning products, bird seed, and craft supplies which are greatly needed to keep the center operational.
Eagle Elementary PTO for their donation of $450 for the support of Nature Club in 2009.
Boone REMC for supporting Z'GreenFest 2010.
Precision Comfort Systems, Inc. for supporting Z'GreenFest 2010.
Elizabeth and Steve Mueller for their generous donation of $100 to the Friends of the Zion Nature Center.
Cecilia Burkhard for her generous donation of $100 to the Friends of the Zion Nature Center for the purchase of dinosaur educational materials.
Gerald Smith donated his 90-gallon marine aquarium to the Nature Center in 2001, and has been maintaining it as a volunteer ever since. He has established a beautiful reef ecosystem in the aquarium that children and adults alike learn from every day. Gerald also volunteers to help out with other Nature Center projects and tasks on a daily basis.
