White Memorial Conservation Center - Calendar of Events: April 2023

April 1

The Pandemic Pantry ~ Crazy About Coconut! with Gerri Griswold

It may be early spring in Connecticut but somewhere in the world folks are imbibing in coconutty, rummy, limey, exotic goodness so why not turn your very home into that tropical paradise today? This Pandemic Pantry focuses on a covey of incredible coconut recipes beginning with that famous summer drink, the Pina Colada. Entrees will include Creamy Coconut Lime Salmon and a fragrant, exotic Chicken Massaman. You’ll learn how to create coconut jasmine rice and coconut pasta to accompany your main courses and end the meal with a criminally moist Coconut Layer Cake! Of course, there will be verbal jousting and borderline naughty behavior with the live studio audience, acerbic tales about cranky Ant Pam, Ant Katherine, and Ant Frances, and you’ll walk away with some delicious recipes and an abundance of belly laughs to boot! The mayhem begins at noon on Zoom and Facebook Live! 12:00 p.m., ZOOM and Facebook Live. Zoom guests register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_8w0ogIDfTIaqcq2pSYSmRQ  FREE… Donations will be accepted to help defray the Conservation Center’s programming expenses.

April 2

Guided Museum Tour with Tom Saunders

You’ll learn so much more about Alain and May White and their generous gift to us, by spending time with Museum Docent, Tom Saunders! Tom is available to give tours on the first and third Sundays of every month at 2:00 pm or by appointment. Admission is FREE to Members and $6.00 for adults, $3.00 for children ages 12 - 6. There is free admission for children under the age of 6.

Thursday, April 6
Ages 3-6 Years
Nature’s Nursery Series
4-5pm
Join us on the first Thursday of each month for an engaging program designed just for your young nature lovers. Every session will include a story, an encounter with a live animal, and an activity or craft. 4-5pm. Parents/Caregivers, we ask that you stay for the duration of the program. Meet in the A.B. Ceder Room. Advanced registration is required. To register, please visit whitememorialcc.org or call 860-567-0857. Space is limited. Please inquire about financial aid as needed. Members: $9/child per session or $30/whole series, Non-Members: $13/child per session or $50/whole series 

April 6 – 12

Museum Children Free Week

In Memory of Author and Conservationist David K. Leff from his Many Friends.

Free admission to children under the age of 12 when accompanied by an adult.

April 7

Good Friday

Offices and Museum Closed

April 8

Jaisalmer: India’s Golden City with Gerri Griswold and Arjun Singh

Join globe-trotting Gerri and her host, Arjun Singh for a virtual travelogue about her recent journey to India during the famous Desert Festival. The annual event takes place each February in the beautiful desert city of Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. Jaisalmer is also known as “The Golden City”. It stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone and is home to the mighty Jaisalmer Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The buildings are intricately carved and a marvel to behold! The celebrations of the festival make the desert come alive with color. Meet the beautiful people who call Jaisalmer home. Learn what Camel Beautification is all about and see Gerri’s friend Tom grab third prize in the Festival’s Turban Tying Contest! This cultural event has many highlights all colorfully captured, so you won’t have to endure the 23-hour flight to get there! 10:00 a.m., ZOOM. Members: FREE  Non-Members: $10.00. Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. Call 860-567-0857 or register online: www.whitememorialcc.org

April 9

Easter Sunday

Museum Closed

Tuesday, April 11 – Friday, April 14
“Sense-sational” Spring Break Camp
Grades 1-3: 9:30am – 12:30pm
Grades 4-6: 1:30 – 4:30pm
Which CT animal has the best sense of hearing? Who can see better: a human or a hawk? Why do owls not mind eating smelly skunks? All of these questions about the senses will be answered and more during our “Sense”sational Spring Break Camp. Spend your vacation exploring the wild and wonderful natural world at White Memorial. Meet live animals up close, make some awesome crafts, tromp around the woods, and play fun games, all while learning about the amazing senses of our native critters. Snacks and drinks will be served between adventures. Parents/Guardians are welcome to stay, but it is not necessary. Meet in the A.B. Ceder Room. Advanced registration is required. Space is limited! You can sign up by day or for the whole week. Please call 860-567-0857 or visit whitememorialcc.org to register. Please inquire about financial aid as needed. Members: $25/child per session or $90/child for the week. Non-members: $40/child per session or $150/child for the week

April 15

Bats: Earth’s Allies

Join Gerri Griswold for a lavishly illustrated talk that touches on the basics of one of the most beneficial and maligned animals on our planet—the bat. How many species of bats are there? Where do they live? Why are they so important to us? What is harming them? What can we do to help them…and so much more will be addressed. Meet a live Big Brown Bat ambassador! 2:00 p.m., A. B. Ceder Room, Members: $5.00,  Non Members: $10.00, Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. Call 860-567-0857 or register online: www.whitememorialcc.org

April 16

Guided Museum Tour with Tom Saunders

You’ll learn so much more about Alain and May White and their generous gift to us, by spending time with Museum Docent, Tom Saunders! Tom is available to give tours on the first and third Sundays of every month at 2:00 pm or by appointment. Admission is FREE to Members and $6.00 for adults, $3.00 for children ages 12 - 6. There is free admission for children under the age of 6.

April 20 – 26

Museum Children Free Week

In Memory of Louise W. Willson. Free admission to children under the age of 12 when accompanied by an adult.

April 20

Babies in Backpacks with Kelly Orr

For Ages 6 months to 2 years!

Come and explore the great outdoors in a way that your child can get excited about! The third Thursday of every month we will enjoy a hike with your child in a babywearing carrier or follow their pace if they are mobile.  There will only be expectations of exploring the world around us, not of a mile mark or speed.  Depending on the energy level of the group we will use our bodies to move in nature for 30 minutes, followed by an activity.  We will read books about the outdoors, enjoy touch and feel stations, use sand and water bins and more! This will be a year-round program. The goal is to encourage family time outdoors in all seasons.  We will still play outside in rain, snow, heat, and cold.  Unsafe weather will push us indoors.  Plan to get a little dirty, and come with weather appropriate clothing, sunscreen and bug spray as needed.  Caretakers must stay for the duration of the program. Please park in the horse trailer parking and meet in the Pollinator Garden.  

10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m., Members: $9/child per session or $30/whole series, Non-Members: $13/child per session or $50/whole series Pre-registration is required by calling 860-567-0857 or register online here: www.whitememorialcc.org  Space is limited. Please inquire about financial aid as needed.

April 21

STAR PARTY!

Members of the Litchfield Hills Amateur Astronomy Club and the Mattatuck Astronomical Society organize this astronomy program. Weather permitting; there will be star gazing after the program. 8:00 P.M., A.B. Ceder Room. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. You are invited to bring your own telescope or binoculars. FREE… Donations will be accepted to help defray the Conservation Center’s programming expenses.

April 22

Woodcock Cocktail Party

Learn about the comical little woodland bird also known as the Timberdoodle. After a brief talk over hors d'oeuvres and non-alcoholic libations, Gerri Griswold will lead you on a search for the woodcock and its mating display, one of ornithology's greatest treats. Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. 6:00 p.m., A. B. Ceder Room, Members: $10.00, Non Members: $20.00 Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. Call 860-567-0857 or register online: www.whitememorialcc.org

April 25 / 26

Give Local!

Hosted by the Connecticut Community Foundation, Give Local Greater Waterbury & Litchfield Hills is a 36-hour online community giving event that encourages donors to lend their support to the nonprofit organizations that work every day to make our community stronger.

Every dollar donated to the Conservation Center from 7 a.m. on April 26 to 7 p.m. on April 27 will help defray the cost of the 40^th Annual Family Nature Day on September 26, 2020 and cover the cost of virtual programming throughout the year!

Since the pandemic lock-down, the Conservation Center has worked tirelessly to offer speakers from all over the globe via ZOOM. Topics discussed are diverse; from spiders to Neolithic architecture in Scotland, reindeer in the Canadian Arctic, concerts from Iceland, chats about weather and geology from California, visits to bog people in Denmark, and virtual travels to table top mountains in Venezuela with a renowned British explorer! We have chatted about a variety of topics with people from Egypt, Canada, India, Malaysia, Chile, Iceland, France, England, Denmark, and Scotland! This programming comes with an annual price tag of $3000. The price tag for Family Nature Day is $10,000!  Your donations will be stretched with bonus funds provided by the Connecticut Community Foundation and generous Give Local sponsors. We are also eligible to win amazing cash prizes during the event! 

Watch our website www.whitememorialcc.org or read your Habitattler for more details on how you can donate or visit our personal Give Local page https://www.givelocalccf.org/organizations/white-memorial-conservation-center

April 27 – May 3

Museum Children Free Week

In honor of Rebecca and Jeremy Greenwood from Jeff and Zoe Greenwood. Free admission to children under the age of 12 when accompanied by an adult.

Friday, April 28 – Saturday, April 29
30^th Annual Museum Sleep-In!
4-6th Grade
5:00pm Friday – 12:00pm Saturday

Join us for a real-life “Night at the Museum” experience! We’ll have a slumber party amongst the exhibits in the Museum. Plus, we’ll embark on a night hike, gather around the campfire, make special crafts, explore Ongley Pond, and so much more. In the morning, you’ll be treated to breakfast and a special program featuring live animals. Bring a friend and make new ones too! Parents, this is a drop-off program, but plenty of adult chaperones from the WMCC Education and Activities Committee will be there. Meet in the Museum. Advanced registration is required. Registration begins on April 1 and must be received by April 22. Space is limited to 25 kids. Please call 860-567-0857 or visit whitememorialcc.org to register. Please inquire about financial aid as needed. Event will occur rain or shine. This event is conducted by the WMCC Education and Activities Committee. Members: $60/child, Non-Members: $120/child

April 29

Animal Adaptations with Gerri Griswold

Why is a vulture’s head bald? Why are porcupines so slow? Why does an Opossum play possum? These and answers to your many other questions will be revealed in an hour-long program. Animal Adaptations uses natural props, animal mounts, and a couple of surprise guests to illustrate the definitions of both structural and behavioral adaptations, and how adaptations help animals survive in different environments. Participants will be able to guess how certain “mystery props” could be used as adaptations for animals. This is a great program for kids and adults! 2:00 p.m., A. B. Ceder Room, Members: $5.00  Non Members: $10.00, Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. Call 860-567-0857 or register online: www.whitememorialcc.org