Mother Nature will be on display – from a wildlilfe animal show to a walk in the woods – at the annual Mother Nature Festival to be held at the Lawrence Nature Center at 481 Drexel Avenue on May 11.
The event, which is free, runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. The Friends of the Lawrence Nature Center is the host to the festival. There is some parking, but visitors are encouraged to ride a bicycle or walk to the nature center.
The Mother Nature Festival is a family-friendly event. There will be children’s activities, ranging from a potato sack race to arts and crafts, a plant sale, and a guided nature walk in the Drexel Woods along the banks of the Shabakunk Creek.
In addition to the wildlife show, entertainment includes the mystical-pop tunes of Tommy and Abby Anton. Girls Scouts will make presentations, also.
Visitors will learn how electricity is generated by solar panels, thanks to a presentation by Solar Man of Advanced Solar Products. The man in the yellow sun suit also is known as Lyle Rawlings.
“We want people to come to the Lawrence Nature Center and learn about the vital role that nature plays in our lives,” said Teresita Bastides-Heron of the Friends of the Lawrence Nature Center.
The first Mother Nature Festival was held in 2004, when the Lawrence Nature Center officially opened. The history of the Drexel Woods and the nature center property date back hundreds of years, when the land was occupied first by the Leni Lenape Indians and then by European settlers.
Lawrence Township purchased the 34-acre Drexel Woods property in the mid-1990’s to prevent it from being developed. The township subsequently purchased the 10-acre Rinck property, on which the Lawrence Nature Center sits.
The Rinck House was renovated by the Lawrence Township Department of Public Works to become the Lawrence Nature Center. The two-car garage on the property was renovated by Girl Scouts and incorporated into the nature center.