“Reflecting on the past, and looking towards the future” is the theme for Audubon Community Nature Center’s Volunteer Recognition Picnic on Friday, May 20, at the Nature Center. Some of the volunteers recognized at last year’s event are pictured. Submitted photo

The Audubon Community Nature Center will host a volunteer recognition picnic on Friday, May 20.

In 2021, 253 individuals logged 8,931 volunteer work hours at Audubon Community Nature Center. On May 20, from 4 to 6 p.m., the picnic will celebrate a year of Audubon’s volunteer accomplishments and honor those who have reached significant milestones within the 2021 calendar year, ranging from 100 to 7,000 hours of service.

“Reflecting on the past, and looking towards the future” is the theme for the event that includes a free picnic-style dinner for all current ACNC volunteers. Non-volunteers are welcome for $8 each, $6 Nature Center members.

Reservations are required, with payment if applicable, by Monday, May 16. Volunteers are asked to call the Nature Center at 716-569-2345 to register. Non-volunteers can call or register online through “Upcoming Programs” at AudubonCNC.org.

Volunteers work in every department at ACNC, taking care of the trails, gardens, animals, and buildings; performing data entry, store inventory, animal care, and cleaning; leading nature walks, working festivals and events, providing programs and outreach; in addition to serving on the board and other administrative committees.

Those who will be recognized for specific achievements in their number of recorded hours are Thom Armella for more than 7,000 volunteer hours, Todd Anderson for more than 6,000 volunteer hours, Pat Brininger for more than 4,000 hours and Janet Forbes for more than 1,000.

David Bull and Jennifer Pierce both achieved more than 500 hours, and Mallory Brannon, Penny Lester, Paul Swanson and Joe O’Hara reached more than 250 hours.

Patricia Borowski, Patricia Fincher, Arlene Connelly, Ruth Lundin, Jennifer Schlick, Deborah McAndrews, Brittany Wilcox, Mallory Lohnes, Mark Mason and Jerry Hildom will be recognized for reaching more than 100 hours of recorded volunteer time.

A number of these volunteers are registered with RSVP, the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.

Audubon Community Nature Center’s 2022 Volunteer Program is sponsored by Univera Healthcare.

The Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown and Warren. Dawn to dusk daily use the six miles of trails and outdoor Nature Play Area and view Liberty, Audubon’s non-releasable Bald Eagle, all for free.

The three-story Nature Center building houses interactive displays, a collection of live animals including the Hellbender exhibit, the 2021 Nature Photography Contest winners, and the Blue Heron Gift Shop. Visitors are welcome Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Sundays, 1 to 4:30 p.m. Nature Center members and SNAP/EBT cardholders have free building admission daily. Building admission is also free every Sunday for non-Nature Center members.

To learn more about Audubon and its programs, call 716-569-2345, find Audubon Community Nature Center on Facebook, or visit AudubonCNC.org.