Fellow Birders and Friends:
Just received the following update from Dr. Robin Feierabend on the
progress of the Nature Center Expansion project at Steele Creek Park.
Note that donations are still needed to reach the funding goal for the
first phase work(described below). If you have already donated, thanks
so much. However I urge you to consider making another to this wonderful
project. If you haven't given here is your opportunity. Donations in
memory or in honor of someone special in your life are welcome,
regardless of the amount. Your support is a reflection of a commitment
to protecting and preserving the wonderful birds and other wildlife and
their habitats that enhance the quality of our lives. We can't take
these natural resources for granted. **Donations can be mailed to
Friends of Steele Creek Nature Center and Park, P.O. Box 1763, Bristol,
TN 37621.
*Here's an update of the SCP Nature Center Expansion Project:*
/"First of all, Burwill is essentially done with their part of the
construction. City workers will be doing finishing work on the new
portion of the building itself over the coming months. In the meantime,
we have begun contracting with vendors who will construct and install
many of the new exhibits. Our current plans are to open the main
gallery with the aquarium display, the woodland diorama, //*the bird
life diorama,*//the waterfowl exhibit and the crawl-through cave exhibit
(downstairs) in time to have a grand opening at Wildlife Weekend, in
October. In addition, the large classroom will be ready to go at that
time. In the meantime, we hope to have a couple of "sneak-peek" events
in June - one, in the evening, for our major donors, and an "open-house"
for the public on a weekend day; stay tuned for more announcements./
//
/For those who would like to see where we are in the process, and what
we anticipate many of the exhibits to look like, here's an update page
on our website: //https://www.friendsofsteelecreek.org/?page_id=2685
<https://www.friendsofsteelecreek.org/?page_id=2685>//
/
/We're making good progress with our fundraising, though we still have a
long way to go. To date, we've raised $190,000 which is about 85% of
what we need to finish all of the first phase work described above (for
the October opening). We're still reaching out to several potential
major donors, but also continue to encourage contributions of all sizes
to help us reach that goal. We would love to hear about anyone
(individuals or businesses) with "deep pockets" who might be interested
in helping us; but we also greatly appreciate all donations, regardless
of the amount. Since this is very much a community resource, we want to
see community-wide ownership of the project!"/
Thanks so much for your consideration.
Ron Harrington
Bristol, VA
