By: Patrick Troyer, Paulding SWCD
Are you and your family ready to get out of the house and enjoy some nice spring weather? Are you wanting to find some way to also give back to your community? Look no further than some great spring family fun coming to the Black Swamp Nature Center on Saturday, April 13th from 10am to 12:30pm. Oh, did we also mention that this day of family fun is FREE? The Paulding Soil & Water Conservation District is once again hosting an outdoor day just like the once hosted in February where participants enjoyed some ice skating, crafts, and some great food! Each season the Paulding SWCD will be hosting an outdoor event at the Black Swamp Nature Center so that all our residents can enjoy some great family fun and enjoy one of our county’s treasures.
“Spring Family Fun Day” is the name of our event on April 13th and will take place at the Black Swamp Nature Center building located at 753 Fairground Drive in Paulding. Activities will be held both indoors and outdoors with everything being moved indoors in the event of inclement weather. Those who attend will have a choice of the activities they would like to partake in with plenty of things to do for all ages. There will also be the opportunity to put your name in for some amazing door prizes meaning you will not want to miss this event! So, what activities do we have going on you ask? Word around the street is that a man by the name of Johnny Appleseed will take a rest from his travels at the Nature Center. Johnny will share the many stories of his travels across the Midwest as he plants his apple trees. You never know the amazing stories that Johnny will tell!
Who likes honeybees and their great tasting honey? Yet another thing that the public can enjoy during our outdoor day is a stop by to see local beekeeper Jamie Walters who will bring his live beehive for everyone to see. Never fear, the bees are in an enclosed display. Jamie will share everything there is to know about beekeeping and may even give you a chance to taste some of the honey from his hives! Do you know all the products that you use every day that come from bees and pollinators? Some of the items that Jamie shares may surprise some of you. Also, you will learn the importance that pollinators serve to our environment and even get a first-hand look at the pollinator prairie recently established at the Black Swamp Nature Center!
Maybe a hike sounds like something that you may want to do. There will be guided walks of the wonderful trails at the Black Swamp Nature Center where you will see the beauty of nature right in our own backyard. With the walk, we will also have a scavenger hunt for the whole family to take part in of different things to look for during your adventure through the trails. Will you see a squirrel’s nest, different types of tree bark, or maybe all the ponds? Join us for this walk and find out! If you would like to walk the trails and look for the scavenger hunt items at your leisure, that is fine too!
Inside the Nature Center Building, there is plenty to take part in as well. At this location, there will be several crafts for the kids to take part in along with the opportunity to grab a bite to eat! A light lunch and drinks courtesy of the Paulding SWCD will be served in the Nature Center Building thanks to the generosity of our amazing team of volunteers from around the community and our counterparts at other Paulding County offices. Cookies will also be available thanks to the generosity of Kathy Sanderson. Stop in and fuel up for your fun!
In honor of Earth Day, there will be the opportunity as well to take part in a clean up of the park and trails at the Black Swamp Nature Center. For those who would like to do this, be sure to spring gardening gloves, scoop shovels, rakes, and pruners to help us get the Nature Center ready for the upcoming season and clean up from a long winter. We will clean up limbs and other debris from the trails as well as pick up any litter on the trails and around the park.
As you can see, there is plenty of things for your family to do and not cost you anything! Those who attend will have the opportunity to put their name in for some great door prizes so be sure to come and join us for your chance to win! We look forward to seeing you at the Black Swamp Nature Center on Saturday, April 13th from 10am to 12:30pm. Our event will be held rain or shine, with activities being moved inside in the event of rain. If you have any questions about this event call the Paulding SWCD office at 419-399-4771 or email us at paulding@pauldingswcd.org.
