Onlinewww.SentineINews.comjneighbors

Wednesday, April 18, 2012 B

Signs withthe mes-

sage'KeepMe Clean'(above)reminded

visitors of themeaning ofEarth Day asthey enteredRed Orchard

Park onSaturday.

These birdswere on dis-play at thepark, cour·

tesy of RaptorRehabilitationof Kentucky.

Staff photoby Lisa King

Ecology and technologymerge as hundreds gatherto admire nature and recycleelectronic appliances.

By LISAKINGSenti nel-News Staff Writer

lisa@sentineinews.com

The scene at Red Orchard Park on Saturday was jovial, with asteady stream of people lugging electronic castoffs to a recy-cling truck and kids running and playing, or trying to play,on wet playground equipment.Although rain and cool temperatures limited the crowd to

a few hundred people at the Earth Day festivities, those who did attendappeared to have a great time, and Parks and Recreation Director ClayCottongim said he considered the event a success.Although Shelby County celebrated

Earth Day on Saturday, the event isofficially observed on April 22 and hasbeen since 2009, when that date wasdesignated by the United Nations.'The weather has hurt us a little bit,

but everybody here is having a greattime," he said. "A lot of people are tak-ing advantage of being able to bring intheir old computers and TVs to havethem recycled, and the kids are havinga ball in the nature center. We recentlygot a new com snake in, and he justshed his skin a minute ago, and thekids just loved that."Joan Brown, a retired educa-

tional assistant from the KentuckyDepartment of Fish and Wildlife,charmed a captive audience as sheexplained the habits of the com snakewhile holding one of the creatures atthe reptile exhibit upstairs in the MillerEducation Center."Isn't he a beauty? Who would like

to pet him?" she asked the group, whichincluded Brownie Troop 818 of ShelbyCounty.Not too many of the children took

her up on it, not caring too much for the idea, although the snake hadjust shed his skin, presumably in honor of the Earth Day festivities."I've been around snakes all my life and worked with them a lot at

Fish and Wildlife," Brown, who is from Shelby County, told a reporterafter the children had left the room to go check out the beehive exhibitin the next room."Even as a child, I could find snakes along any creek," she said

proudly.Other exhibits in the Nature Center included birds' nests, booths

manned by Fish and Wildlife and hives furnished by the Shelby CountyBeekeepers Association. That club's president, Danny Keeton, who has12 hives, said he uses his bees for the production of honey, which hesells at Tapps Feed.Outside, an exhibit by Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky had its

own small group who had gathered around to admire several birds thatwere tethered to their perches.

Sam and Saraah Jewel of Shelbyville said they enjoyed all the exhib-its, although their daughter, Eliza, who will turn a year old this week,wasn't too sure about the birds, judging from the expression on her face."She just hasn't seen anything like them up this close before," Sarah

Jewel said, pointing to their prominent talons and curved beaks, asthe birds occasionally expressed frustration with their inability to takeflight.Meanwhile, back at the barn behind the Miller House, the animals

were a bit cuddlier, as children vied to pet a baby rabbit supplied byWalt Reichert, who also brought along some roosters."We are having a really good time," said Kerri Shepard, as she

watched her daughter, Kasey, pet the rabbit, while the Merry Dulcimersprovided folk music in the background.The bam also held exhibits keeping with the Earth Day theme, such

as a booth on litter abatement manned by Clean Community DirectorKathy Ranard, an exhibit by the Shelby County Master Gardeners, aswell as handmade crafts and many other items of interest. There waseven a display of elk and deer antlers, deer hides and related items,courtesy of Joy Fitzgerald, a conservation educator with Fish andWildlife."I like bringing things the kids can handle, especially involving our

wildlife," she said.

Photo by Cheryl Van StockumShelby County celebratedEarth Day Saturday atRed Orchard Park. Theevent featured exhibits onsnakes, bees, birds, con-servation and more.

Staff photo by Lisa King

Alanna Jackson(above, left)and Bianca

Pazmino, bothwith BrownieTroop 818,aren't sureif they wantto pet a cornsnake held byretired Fishand Wildlife

employee JoanBrown at the

Miller EducationCenter.

But Sercy Lotz(right) pets a

rabbit belongingto an exhibitfurnished by

Walt Reichert.Photo by Cheryl Van Stockum

Volunteers load computer equipment and old TVs thePhoto by Cheryl Van Stockum public brought in to be recycled.