MANSFIELD, Ohio – The Ohio Bird Sanctuary’s classroom space has officially flown the nest, settling into the organization’s new visitor center just up the hill from the Sanctuary’s administration and bird care facility.
Originally a dining hall for the Boy Scouts’ Camp Avery Hand, the new visitor center will provide space for the Sanctuary’s growing services as well as provide opportunities for the expansion of educational programming and rehabilitation services. Executive Director Gail Laux said the dining hall and surrounding acres were purchased from the Boy Scouts in 2010.
“We thought at some point we’re going to need growth, this gave us a building we could grow into,” said Laux. “We were very limited originally because if we had bad weather our buildings could only hold 30 to 40 kids at a time. Now we can handle as many as 80 because now we have an interior space if it’s too cold, too hot or too rainy.”
The 6,570 square-foot building will be used primarily for camps and school field trips, but has the space for larger events such as presentations or banquets. The space can seat up to 300 people and a new parking lot provides 100 additional spaces for vehicles.
As the Sanctuary is a 501(3) non-profit organization, funding for the purchase of the building and grounds was provided by a number of foundations, including the Richland County Foundation. The Richland County Foundation, the Taylor Family Foundation and a number of private donors provided local funds for phase one of building renovations, including new plumbing and electric, an HVAC system, and the creation of a warming kitchen and a gift shop.
“There has been so many times where we’ve said if only we had that space ready,” said Laux. “We don’t feel like this is at all premature, we find many times we need the space and need it working because we have those types of visitor numbers.”
The Sanctuary also plans to open its new space to the public. Laux said as a way of creating sustainable income, the Sanctuary would rent the visitor center to groups for birthdays, weddings or graduation parties when it’s not being used for educational purposes or summer camps.
“We’ll be able to be a destination for events,” said Laux. “Especially the community that used to have access to Avery Hand; one of our first rentals is an old Boy Scout graduating from high school, so to have his graduation party here means a lot to him and his family.
“But it cannot go out of the mission of the Ohio Bird Sanctuary – we have limitations on what you can do here because it’s a wildlife sanctuary, and that’s what we are first,” she added.
The Sanctuary’s mission of rehabilitating Ohio’s native birds is running much smoother these days with the new building. Laux explained bird care has been isolated to the lower building, and the former classroom has been renovated into an administration space as well as new bird enclosures.
“It’s really been nice already to have the new enclosures down below for isolating the birds when they first come in, because now we have the ability to put them in natural-lit areas that are easy to clean and no human contact, and that’s really important for these birds,” said Laux. “We’re probably just as excited about the lower building.”
Laux has recently taken the Ohio Bird Sanctuary’s mission to a national audience with an appearance on National Geographic. Laux was featured on the Nat Geo Wild channel on a new television show, “Everything You Didn’t Know About Animals.”
“When I was first contacted I thought it was a scam, because why would they call me? There are lot of owl specialists between California and Ohio,” said Laux with a laugh. “He said he wanted me to talk about things you can’t find on the Internet, things I know because I work with the animals that the general public doesn’t know and can’t find just by Googling owls on the Internet.”
National Geographic flew Laux out to Los Angeles for filming. Her episode “Lions, Owls & Frogs” is the second episode of the series.
“They put me in front of a green screen, which was a little vulnerable because you’re not quite sure what they might pop up behind you,” Laux joked. “It was fun, they ask the questions and then they ask you to say it again but say it a little bit differently.”
Laux’s episode premiered on Nat Geo Wild on April 20 and aired again on May 20. She joked that her mother and sister notify the entire family every time the episode airs.
“On field trips it’s kind of fun to say to the kids, you just might recognize someone on there,” said Laux. “And it’s great exposure for the Bird Sanctuary. I don’t know if it would drive people here, but you never know.”
