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| Wednesday, September 30, 2009 | | Big Weekend! | 
Out on the boardwalk on a beautiful Rivers Day!
| It has been a very busy weekend here at the Discovery Centre. On Saturday and Sunday, we hosted Artists on the River with the City of New Westminster and the Arts Council of New Westminster. I am happy to report that, although the wind did cause some trouble on Saturday, we had gorgeous weather. It was our biggest event to date with record numbers of visual and musical artists, and attendees. Walking around outside in the sun, talking to artists and listening to the live music, it was hard to believe that it was the end of September!
No sooner had we finished up Artists on the River on Sunday, than we were gearing up for the BC Field Trip Fair on Monday. As I was writing this blog entry, hundreds of teachers and exhibitors were milling about the Discovery Centre. The Field Trip Fair is an annual event, which brings together teachers and educational institutions. Teacher leave energized with new ideas for field trips and exhibitors leave with many new school and education contacts. So far, the feedback has been positive for both the Fair and for our new site. In fact, many of the guests have never been in the Centre. It is down right lovely to hear the voices of hundreds of people in the galleries!
I cannot finish up a recap of the weekend without an especially big thank you to our amazing volunteers! Without them the weekend could not have been as successful as it was. It was fantastic to see us all out together spreading the Discovery Centre message.
Although our staff and volunteers are tuckered out, we are thrilled with the weekend. In just three days over a thousand people came to visit the Centre! Yah Discovery Centre Team!
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| Monday, September 21, 2009 | | Busy Bees | 
| Staff here at the Discovery Centre are heading into our biggest week of the year. This Sunday we’ll be joining millions of others around the world to celebrate World River’s Day. Us BC-ers can be especially proud of this day, since World Rivers Day has its roots firmly planted in BC. (Or perhaps I should say that World Rivers Day has its headwaters running from BC? *insert groans here*)
In 1980 river conservationist and BCIT instructor, Mark Angelo founded BC Rivers Day. Its success led to the establishment of World Rivers Day in 2005. The day, now endorsed by the UN, offers a chance for millions of people to gather together at hundreds of events held worldwide on the last weekend of September to celebrate river systems and promote water stewardship. We are especially excited for this year, since the 2009 World Rivers Day feature river is our own Fraser River.
The Discovery Centre has been working for the past few months with the City of New Westminster and the Arts Council of New Westminster to plan this year’s World Rivers Day event, the 6th Annual Artists on the River. Thanks to financial assistance from Canadian Heritage and from the City of New Westminster, this coming Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 3pm, the Quay and the Discovery Centre will be filled with artists and activities all designed to encourage an appreciation for the Fraser River.
Over 20 visual artists will gather at the Fraser River Discovery Centre and along the boardwalk at the Quay to share with the public how the river inspires their work. I invite you to drop by and watch art demonstrations and chat with the artists. Inside the Discovery Centre, you can get creative at a number of stations celebrating art and our connection to the Fraser River. Kids can create a river hat, get their hands dirty at the pollution model, enjoy puppet shows or paint a fish with Stream of Dreams to decorate the fence adjacent to the Discovery Centre. And on Sunday (BC and World Rivers Day) musicians will be entertaining the crowds.
Click here for a full schedule of events. Click here for more information on BC Rivers Day and here for World Rivers Day.
Artists on the River will be held rain or shine so cross your fingers for another sunny weekend and come to the Discovery Centre to be inspired by the river!
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| Wednesday, September 02, 2009 | | We want you! |
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| As the kids head back to school, Shannon and Rebecca (our intrepid FRDC education department) are busily preparing for the thousands of school children who will attend programs at the centre this coming school year. As fantastic as Shannon and Rebecca are, they cannot run all of the programs themselves and they are looking to expand the Discovery Centre education volunteer team.
Interpretive volunteers, called docents, work in teams to lead the school programs. Docents allow students to receive individual attention as they break down into small groups. Anyone can be a docent; it does not require any special background or experience. The only qualifications needed are an interest in working with children, a desire to learn about the Fraser River and a morning or afternoon to give to the Centre.
If you’d like to see what being a Discovery Centre Docent is all about, Shannon will be hosting a Docent Kick Off on Saturday September 12. (Please RSVP by Sept 10.) Ongoing training sessions will be scheduled throughout September.
Click here to go to the volunteer information page.
For more information, please email Shannon King at education[at]fraserriverdiscovery[dot]org or call 604-521-8401. |
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