News and Events
Discovery Day - June 2011
Event Details
This open house wass a family-friendly event showcasing the variety of engaging activities taking place at the Discovery Center ~ Great Lakes. The Watershed Center had an Art of the Watershed display exhibiting vibrant acrylic and pastel artwork by Lisa Wilkins-Schulte, the Maritime Heritage Alliance had a variety of historic boats on display, Traverse Area Community Sailing hosted toy sailboat races, and the Great Lakes Children’s Museum offered half-price admission! Family refreshments were also available including local Moomers ice cream.
Activities and Offerings
Each Discovery Center member organization will offered a variety of activites for all ages throughout the event, including:
Great Lakes Children's Museum
- Half-off admission ($3)
- Biosand Water Filter on display
- Wooden "Build-a-Boat" hands-on activity for kids
Maritime Heritage Alliance
- Open house in the workshops including active construction/renovation of historic wooden boats for viewing
- Historic boats on display in the courtyard
- Voyageur canoe on display and information about the history of birch bark canoes in the Great Lakes Region
The Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay
- Art of the Watershed with Lisa Wilkins-Schulte's eye-dazzling vibrant acrylics and pastels
- Aquatic insect display/activity
Traverse Area Community Sailing
- Gutter races for kids with the boats they create
- A Sail Program boat on display and information about their area sailing programs for kids
Nature Trail Connector
Along with encouraging non-motorized travel to Discovery Center, the nature trail connector will serve several purposes, including:
- Open a transportation connection from the Leelanau Trail at the back of the property to the Discovery Center ~ Great Lakes, as well as Greilickville Harbor Park, Elmwood Township Marina, and other attractions on or in the vicinity of the property.
- Create a self-guided nature trail for trail users that will provide access to and interpretation of key elements of the natural features, especially in the wetland and creek areas.
- Provide an opportunity for the Great Lakes Children’s Museum and The Watershed Center to offer specialized facilitated educational programs.
- Create overlooks at appropriate locations to best enable both self-guided and facilitated educational experiences.
Natural Features Inventory and Natural Resources Protection Plan
The natural resource protection plan is being created to enable Discovery Center ~ Great Lakes to be good stewards of the property and will include several components:
- Complete a natural features inventory to determine the current status of natural resources on the property.
- Identify ways that the existing natural resources could be protected and/or enhanced.
- Identify ways to improve animal habitat, including fisheries habitat in the creek.
- Identify ways that impacts from the occupied upland portion of the property can be minimized.
Unveiling - June 23, 2009
On June 23rd, 2009, Discovery Center ~ Great Lakes was dedicated as the shared home of several of our community’s important nonprofit organizations. It is a collaborative partnership between four local nonprofits operating with the guidance and support of Rotary Camps & Services. Current operations on site include, the Great Lakes Children's Museum’s hands-on learning facility, the Maritime Heritage Alliance’s workshops for building and repairing historic boats, and the Watershed Center’s office and Bay Monitor tug. Traverse Area Community Sailing plans to someday utilize the West Bay waterfront for large boat sailing instruction.
Here at Discovery Center ~ Great Lakes, we want to create educational opportunities while helping to protect the water quality of the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay. We are continually working to foster good stewardship of the property, including its wetlands, and creeks. Two activities in progress that will help us with these goals are a nature trail connection to the TART trails system and a Natural Resource Protection plan.
