Volunteer opportunity in the community

The Friends of High School Park, High School Road, Elkins Park, is seeking volunteers to contribute to the ongoing native plant restoration at High School Park: May 16, 10 a.m. to noon; May 17, 1 to 3 p.m.; May 30, 10 a.m. to noon; May 31, 1 to 3 p.m. All work parties begin at the shed, located near Montgomery Avenue. Wear long pants and long sleeves, and bring work gloves if you have them, otherwise they will be provided. Groups welcome, call Gina at 215-782-8082 for details.

BBNC Butterfly House

Spring has sprung! How can you tell? At Briar Bush, we can tell because our ferns are growing taller each day, butterflies are fluttering through the meadow, bees are buzzing and the sun is shining warmly upon us.

All of this means we're also getting closer to the opening of our new butterfly house! Construction has been completed and the next step is to plant all of the plants that will help our butterflies and caterpillars grow, and installing the new exhibits.

Abington School District second graders grow butterflies in their classrooms every year to learn about the life cycle and observe the the process of metamorphosis. Once the plants are in and the caterpillars have become butterflies, the second graders will be coming to release their Pink Lady butterflies into our house. We are so excited to be able to provide a safe place for these butterflies to live and for all of you to come visit them.

The official ribbon-cutting for the house will be during Celebrate the Sun, the annual fund-raising event when we present a special individual with our Griscom Award. That event will be Sunday, June 7. For more information about Celebrate the Sun, call the Center at 215-887-6603.

If you raise butterflies at home and are interested in more information about releasing them into our butterfly house, please call us for details. Because many butterflies each species-specific plants, we are only able to sustain certain types of butterflies.

Celebrate Earth Day Every Day!

Briar Bush Nature Center had a GREAT turn-out for our free Earth Day celebration on April 19 - over 200 visitors!!! Thank you so much to all those who came to participate in our activities and appreciate the world of wonders we work so hard to preserve for your enjoyment. The weather was perfect for spending the day outside and everyone enjoyed the free, environmentally-friendly gifts they received after participating in all of the activities.

Even though Earth Day is over, don't stop celebrating! Be sure you are caring for our Earth every day and in every way :)

Pictures to come soon...!

Get outside and get dirty!

The Abington Environmental Advisory Council and Shade Tree Commission is celebrating Earth Day during the entire month of April. Join them during one of the many volunteer opportunities for the "Great Abington Clean-up." Volunteer hours will be reported to the "Great PA Clean-up."

Sat. April 18, 9:00 : STC Rubicam Park Cleanup

Sat. April 18, 9:00 : Keswick Ave. Train Underpass Cleanup

Sat. April 18, 10:00 : EAC Grove Park Cleanup

Sat. April 18, 10:30 : Ardsley Wildlife Sanctuary Cleanup

Thurs. April 23, 11:30: McKinley Elementary School Cleanup

Sat. April 25, 9:30 : Jackson Park Arbor Day & Tree City USA Celebration

Sat. April 25, 9:00 : Baederwood Park Cleanup

Sun. April 26, 12:00 : Edge Hill Rotary Cleanup of Limekiln Pike

Weds. April 29, 3:30 : Copper Beech Elementary Cleanup

And don't forget about Arbor Day!

Arbor Day 2009 Celebration

Saturday April 25, 2009

9:30-11:00 am

Jackson Park

(meet by sign near 1600 Amity Road and Sherwood Road)

Events: Tree planting, Tree City USA award, park cleanup, flower garden planting, invasive plant removal

Celebrate one of Abington's newest parks: Jackson Park in Meadowbrook.

The EAC and Shade Tree Commission celebrate Arbor Day each year with a tree planting in April. The trees are planted in a public open space that needs beautification or greening. The celebration includes planting trees and flowers, a brief dedication, and light refreshments. The public is invited to join in the free celebration and learn more about trees. If you are interested in volunteering for Arbor Day, please contact us at eac.abington@gmail.com

Find out more about all the great EAC/STC events at http://www.eac-abington.org/

Earth Week Wine and Cheese

"Birds of Paradise - East meets West"

Thursday, April 23, 2009
5 p.m.-7:30 p.m.

Griscom Bird Observatory

Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Jenkintown,
with Event Co-Chairs Iris Innes and BJ Bronstein

Friends - $25 Patrons - $35

Kindly RSVP by Wednesday, April 15

Musical Mark's Batsong Show

If you love bats, visit our friends at Pennypack Trust for this program!

Saturday, June 27, 2009
1 – 2:30 p.m.

$5 members; $10 non-members
(Group rates available)

Bats have an image problem and Musical Mark is out to change that! Musical Mark is a children’s singer-songwriter who has built a multi-media show around his recently completed CD of bat songs. Come see his program that both entertains and educates children about bats. The one-hour show, best for children in grades one through six, will feature special lighting effects, fog machines, costumes and theatrics. After the show, Musical Mark will be available for autographs, photos, etc.

The show will be held in the Visitors’ Center at Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust: 2955 Edge Hill Road, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006. Pre-register by calling the Trust at 215-657-0830 during business hours or by emailing lsteele@pennypacktrust.org.

Recycle your old electronics!

The Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Watershed Partnership, with its mission of enhancing the health of the Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Creek and its 29 miles of drainage land, is holding a two-day ethical electronics recycling event.

Recycle your items for $1/pound at Cedarbrook Middle School (300 Longfellow Road in Wyncote) on March 28 and 29 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Accepted electronics include: TVs, computers, monitors, keyboards, drives, cables, cords, peripherals, copiers, printers, cartridges, fax machines, scanners, laptops, stereo equipment, speakers, CD and DVD players, telephones, remote controls, VCRs, projectors, digital cameras, PDAs, speakers, radios, answering machines, camcorders, electric typewriters, video game systems, pagers, microwaves, toasters, ink cartidges, USB media and media like zip disks, audio tapes and floppy diskettes.