Expressing Gratitude
This time of year is all about gratitude, and here at the Blue Ridge Discovery Center, we have a lot to be thankful for.
This time of year is all about gratitude, and here at the Blue Ridge Discovery Center, we have a lot to be thankful for.
During all your grateful musings this holiday season, take a moment to appreciate the Appalachian Mountains themselves. They are unique on this earth. We are eternally in awe of these mountains, standing old and wise in our rapidly changing world. They are our home, providing an abundance of resources and an endless supply of lessons to be learned. Each and every organism, big and small, maintains balance in complex ecosystems just by being as they are. We are thankful for the role they play, and the endless intrigue they provide. The Blue Ridge shows us that beauty and wonder can be found everywhere, if you take the time to look.
To our donors, members, volunteers, Board of Directors, and community — we are so grateful for your continued support. You help make our work possible, and we couldn’t do this without you.
To the naturalist professionals who have worked alongside us this past year to explore, discover, and share the beauty and biodiversity of the Blue Ridge — we appreciate the work you do, and your eagerness to spread knowledge and passion.
To our community, who guides our mission, and has given so much to us: THANK YOU. You are the reason we are here, always.
Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!
Join us in December at our Little Elf Workshop for some crafty family fun, or later on in December at the New River Christmas Bird Count for a day full of birding as part of an annual community science effort.
2023 BRDC Awards
We are very excited to share the awards Blue Ridge Discovery Center and staff have won so far this year.
Blue Ridge Discovery Center and staff have won several awards this year. These awards truly encompass how much the individuals of our non-profit are embodying our mission of inspiring curiosity, discovery, and stewardship through the wonders of the Blue Ridge.
Lisa Benish, our Executive Director, was awarded a 2022 Community Conservation and Service award by the New River Wildlife and Conservation Club (NRWCC). Through her dedication to BRDC and our community, Lisa provided after school programs, residential programs, day camps, and community naturalist events to a community in need of environmental education. These programs will continue to help students and community members explore the wonders of the Blue Ridge for years to come. Check out this link to read more about Lisa’s award!
Ali Reilly, BRDC Program Coordinator, also received an award this year. Ali was awarded Young Alumna of the Year by the Emory & Henry Alumni Association for her leadership in restoring the wetland at BRDC. This wetland now allows many species to thrive in an environment where they can be studied. Not only did Ali lead this project, she has also led and continues to lead many educational programs focusing on the wetland ecosystem. Check out this link to read more about Ali’s award!
Blue Ridge Discovery Center as an organization also received an award. We were given the Hope Award from Emory & Henry College’s Appalachian Center for Civic Life. This award recognizes the work that organizations do for their community. We are truly honored to be presented with this award, and hope to continue to provide environmental outdoor education opportunities for our community and beyond! Check out this link to read more about it!
Stay tuned to see what’s in store for us next!
BLUE RIDGE DISCOVERY CENTER RECEIVES GRANT FROM VIRGINIA OUTDOORS FOUNDATION
Blue Ridge Discovery Center is pleased to announce it has received $25,000 from the Virginia Outdoor Foundation’s Get Outdoors program.
Blue Ridge Discovery Center (BRDC) is pleased to announce it has received $25,000 from the Virginia Outdoors Foundation’s Get Outdoors (GO) Fund. These funds will support the Accessible Interpretive Trail to increase equitable access to safe open space at the Center.
The trail will be approximately 0.65 miles long and meander through various habitats and native plant communities, including a riparian corridor, a restored wetland, wildflower meadows, a rain garden, through a northern hardwood cove forest, and return to our education facility. With different portions of the trail composed of compacted decomposed granite, sidewalk, and boardwalk, this trail will allow visitors to fully engage with and explore the natural resources surrounding them.
We plan to create a universal design for the Accessible Interpretive Trail to provide equal opportunity not only for persons with disabilities but a variety of situations such as a parent pushing a stroller, a child on crutches, or a person with arthritic knees. The goal of this project is to ensure that all people have the opportunity to access and enjoy the outdoors at BRDC while also protecting natural resources and maintaining the biological integrity of the property.
Much thanks to the Virginia Outdoors Foundation and their staff for support on this project!
Proud Virginia Wildlife Grant Recipient!
We thank VDGIF and WFV for supporting our youth and assisting us in connecting youth to the outdoors!
The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and the Wildlife Foundation of Virginia have partnered together to support engaging youth in the outdoors with a grant funding program. This effort is supported through gear purchases, fundraisers and private donations.
This year, BRDC applied for and received this grant to help meet our mission and get youth outside and engaged through kayaking, providing them with the opportunity to learn an enriching lifelong hobby and acquire basic outdoor skills such as camping and fishing. This grant will also provide comprehensive, safe paddling opportunities to our regional youth.
Support from Smyth County
We are excited to receive the recent resolution from the Smyth County Board of Supervisors supporting our mission and application to the Department of Housing and Community Development Industrial Redevelopment Fund grant.
We are excited to receive the recent resolution from the Smyth County Board of Supervisors supporting our mission and application to the Department of Housing and Community Development Industrial Redevelopment Fund grant.
Blue Ridge Discovery Center has spent the majority of our existence networking and serving the Upper New River Plateau region in the counties of Grayson, Alleghany, Carroll, and the city of Galax. That region is geographically isolated from the I-81 corridor including Smyth and Washington Counties by the massive Mount Rogers, the highest peak in Virginia. With the establishment of our future center in Smyth County, at the base of that mountain, it has been a pleasure getting to know the local community and I-81 region more. It is especially appreciated to see the recent support given by the Smyth County Board of Supervisors for our mission and vision.
We see the future Blue Ridge Discovery Center location, and Mount Rogers as becoming less of a dividing line for our area and more of a focal point for the region at large, bringing the surrounding counties together around one of the greatest natural assets in North America.
Stock Donations, a Powerful Way to Support Vital Causes
With the stock market continuing to hit record highs (The Dow Jones industrial average continues to clear 21,000), now more than ever is an excellent time to consider a stock donation to Blue Ridge Discovery Center.
With the stock market continuing to hit record highs (The Dow Jones industrial average continues to clear 21,000), now more than ever is an excellent time to consider a stock donation to Blue Ridge Discovery Center. This type of support is an excellent way to directly transfer funds to vital causes that you believe in. Our country is in the midst of the greatest economic disparity in our history. Support through stock donations can put the international economic engine of the Stock Market to work right here in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Blue Ridge Discovery Center recently established a brokerage account through our local Bank, Skyline National, to accept a generous stock donation. Just two shares of Amazon stock provided nearly $2,000 that we can apply directly to our programming.
Please take a moment to consider this type of donation and reach out to our Development Officer, Madeline Pidgeon, to discuss more:
Madeline Pidgeon
276.293.1232
madeline@blueridgediscoverycenter.org
BRDC receives SWVA Outdoor Recreation Contract
We are excited to announce that Blue Ridge Discovery Center has been awarded the contract to provide web content for the SWVA Outdoors Website. This project is headed up by the Friends of Southwest Virginia and is an effort to highlight the awesome outdoor recreation opportunities our region has to offer.
We are excited to announce that Blue Ridge Discovery Center has been awarded the contract to provide web content for the SWVA Outdoors Website. This project is headed up by the Friends of Southwest Virginia and is an effort to highlight the awesome outdoor recreation opportunities our region has to offer.
Over the course of the next eight months, BRDC will be exploring and networking all across SWVA from the Blue Ridge Escarpment in the east, north toward to the border mountains and all the way to the western tip of VA at Cumberland Gap. Adventures that we will be documenting will include birding, horseback riding, paddling, hiking, biking, climbing, disc golf, touring, fishing and more! You will be able to keep track of our blogs and photographs on the SWVA website where you can find all sorts of information about destinations and events throughout SWVA.
A large part of our goal is to get others to join this project and help promote and strengthen the SWVA identity. If you know of anyone who would share blogs, events, or photos about outdoor adventures in SWVA, please let us know! This is a great opportunity for individuals or businesses to share their experience and help us strengthen the SWVA identity.
Beyond the opportunity to help connect more people to the outdoors, this is a great chance for our organization to get to know the place we call home while networking with others that share our values. Blue Ridge Discovery Center is proud to be located in SWVA and we are excited to help shift economic focus to our natural assets.
See you in the Great Outdoors!
BRDC Partners with Blue Ridge Birders
Blue Ridge Discovery Center and the Blue Ridge Birders are excited to announce a partnership to make the Blue Ridge Bird Club a program of BRDC! This partnership brings a renewed focus on avian life to BRDC and ensures that the many activities of the Bird Club will continue into the future. Beyond programming, Blue Ridge Birders provided nearly $5,000 from the James Coman Fund to support regional youth education focused on birds.
Blue Ridge Discovery Center and the Blue Ridge Birders are excited to announce a partnership to make the Blue Ridge Bird Club a program of BRDC! This partnership brings a renewed focus on avian life to BRDC and ensures that the many activities of the Bird Club will continue into the future. Beyond programming, Blue Ridge Birders provided nearly $5,000 from the James Coman Fund to support regional youth education focused on birds.
BRDC hopes to energize the club by expanding its network and providing year-round opportunities for participation. A variety of field trips, informative lectures, and youth programs will be offered to expand interest in birding. The birders will also act as stewards by participating in citizen science projects like the VA Breeding Bird Atlas, The Hawk Watch Association of North America and Audubon's Christmas Bird Counts. There are no dues for the club, but we encourage participants to become members of Blue Ridge Discovery and participate in the variety of programs we offer.
On February 11, the Blue Ridge Birders will travel to Burke's Garden for an annual field trip in search of wintering Golden Eagles and Rough-legged Hawks. New members are welcome, and anyone with an interest in birding (beginner and experienced birders alike) is invited to join us. Visit the website: blueridgediscoverycenter.org/blue-ridge-birders to learn more about the Blue Ridge Birders, the club list serve, and upcoming events.
Blue Ridge Birders has a rich 20-year history. NC Conservationist of the Year James Coman helped organize Blue Ridge Birders in 1997 to capitalize on what Roger Tory Peterson celebrated when he said, “Birds are the most vibrant expression of the natural world.” His founding goals for the club were “First and foremost, provide enjoyment to the participants; increase the bird skills of the members; provide better communication with the local birding community and with statewide organizations (the Carolina Bird Club and the Virginia Society of Ornithology); and increase the appreciation of the local birdlife with the public through educational outreach.”
Efforts by James and the Blue Ridge Birders led to the establishment of Bullhead State Natural Area, adjacent to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the site of a second Hawk Count run by Blue Ridge Birders two miles north of the Mahogany Rock Hawk Count. “Peregrine Pete” Zwadyk helped to keep a spring Bullhead Count along with Jim Keighton and facilitate a late-in-the-season Mahogany Rock Count. In 2003 Harrol Blevins established a Blue Ridge Birders list-serve to facilitate communications about interesting bird sightings in the Blue Ridge/New River region of the club, which now has more than 150 participants, many of whom just want to keep in touch with the region from afar.
Regional birding has been at the heart of Blue Ridge Discovery Center since our founding, and many of the people who shared interest in Blue Ridge Birders inspired BRDC. We would like to dedicate this partnership to the memory of James Coman, William Roberts, Peter Zwadyk and Gale Kuebler.
Kevin Hamed honored with 2017 Outstanding Faculty Award!
Our newest board member, Dr. Kevin Hamed, professor of Biology at VHCC, was recently announced as the recipient of the 2017 Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
Our newest board member, Dr. Kevin Hamed, professor of Biology at VHCC, was recently announced as the recipient of the 2017 Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
There is no one more skilled at inspiring students or more deserving of the highest honor for faculty in the state’s colleges and universities! Congratulations Kevin!
Check out the article recent article in the Bristol Paper.
Case study at Tremont!
Blue Ridge Discovery Center staff and board members took a fried-chicken-fueled trip to the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont to study them as a model for the future of BRDC. We came away with both inspiration and a tangible vision!
Blue Ridge Discovery Center staff and board members took a fried-chicken-fueled trip to the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont to study them as a model for the future of BRDC.
Over the years, we have been introduced to examples of excellent nature centers across the United States but one, in particular, kept surfacing: Tremont. With a mission to deliver place-based education through inquiry and interest-driven techniques, Tremont falls directly in line with the goals of BRDC.
We packed up the Subaru, hit the highway and didn't stop until Gus's Famous Fried Chicken in Knoxville! Upon arriving at the Tennessee side of the Smoky Mountains we were greeted by the moss-laden Little River and steep valleys of Tremont. The campus itself is tucked privately across the river. There, we were generously hosted by President and CEO Jennifer Jones and Education Director John DiDeigo. We sat down in their map-covered library and discussed the nuances of a residential education center. Jen was kind enough to share the challenges and strategies of running a campus with 30 full-time staff and over 6,000 resident visitors a year. We discussed the core belief that we are all dedicated to, that education through interest-driven and inquiry-based models can change the world.
Before a family style dinner with a visiting school group, we got the grand tour of campus in crisp 15-degree weather! We took a short walk over two beautiful locust bridges and to fairy tale island. With frozen toes and nose, we returned indoors and joined in the rambunctious Tremont faculty developed "Acorn Ball" - a version of dodgeball with an educational twist.
That night the Tremont guides were kind enough to let us observe their astronomy program where we crouched on the frozen ground and discussed the constellations above.
After breakfast in town, we returned to Tremont and joined in the morning Geology hike to a frozen waterfall. We observed their teaching techniques in action by tagging along with three different school groups. While making our way over the rugged ridges the groups studied faults, slope aspect, and rock types. The hike finished with the "Tremont Challenge" - dipping one's face for ten seconds into the frigid pool below the waterfall. Many students made the hike back with icicles dangling from their hair.
The people, the campus and the students were all very inspirational. It was not hard to close my eyes and see the future of BRDC... hosting kids for overnight programs, exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains, and teaching them how to think independently and critically.
Many thanks to those at Tremont that welcomed us with open arms and who share our mission to better the world. Their enlightened view that the more institutions that are out there providing this type of service, the better the world will be was both refreshing and encouraging.
Tremont is such a spectacular place and getting it done! Pay them a visit if you have a chance!
RIP Sylvester the Snake
At one month old, Sylvester was shipped to Claire Gleason in 2006. He was the amelanistic color variety of corn snake (lacking brown pigment) and eventually grew to 4'9" long.
At one month old, Sylvester was shipped to Claire Gleason in 2006. He was the amelanistic color variety of corn snake (lacking brown pigment) and eventually grew to 4'9" long.
Claire began bringing her snake to BRDC events in 2010, where he became a tremendous hit. Along with Sylvester, Claire brought a wealth of knowledge about snakes, and together they served as ambassadors working to help people come to terms with their unfounded prejudice of snakes.
Sylvester was euthanized on October 21st by the Healing Springs Animal Hospital in Galax after it was discovered that he had an inoperable injury. The staff at Healing Springs was familiar with and very fond of Sylvester.
Sylvester was always gentle, allowing anyone and everyone to hold him. His last educational appearance took place this summer at BRDC’s Adventure Day Camp. It is not an exaggeration to say that hundreds of people were touched by Sylvester. We at BRDC are most grateful for all the times Claire shared Sylvester with us, and offer our condolences.
Claire added this note: he sometimes liked to put his nose in his water bowl and blow bubbles.
Scott Jackson-Ricketts and Claire Gleason