A Family Surfs the Web of Life

Our Experience at the Genesee Country Nature Center
Month by Month, Year by Year

By Debra Ross

My daughters, who are 8 and 6, can't remember the first time our family went to the Genesee Country Nature Center, because we started going regularly when they were babies. My husband and I love hiking, natural beauty, and information...and, thanks in large part to the GCNC, so, now, do Madison and Ella. Visiting the GCNC has become just as much a part of our family rhythm as the Birthday of the Day around the breakfast table or swimming at the Y on Monday afternoons.

The Genesee Country Nature Center is technically part of the Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford, NY. Unlike the Village, though, it is open year-round. So, winter and summer, spring and fall, we regularly make the 35-minute drive from Brighton out to Mumford. Our family recently spent a year in central Virginia, where we searched in vain for a nature center to provide a nature experience that would compare with what we were used to in greater Rochester. So we were thrilled when life brought us back to upstate New York, back to our girls' beloved naturalists, Linda, Liz, and Melissa, and to the superior nature education we had so sorely missed.

What makes the GCNC different?

When you think of the phrase "superior nature education," you might immediately envision a state-of-the-art facility, with high-tech interactive exhibits, glossy signs, and a brilliantly designed facility with separate classroom space. Well, no. While the Nature Center is technically part of the Village, its building is in a separate space, and it's clear that most of the Village's resources go toward history education rather than nature education (although some of the activities, such as the Sugaring-Off days, intersect). So while the Nature Center is perfectly warm and friendly, it is far from slick or refined.

The small habitats built for the Center's non-human residents (turtles, snakes, Madagascar hissing cockroaches) are perfectly adequate, but not state-of-the-art. Displays and signs are often hand-made. But none of the display materials are any the less effective for being hand-made, and even perhaps are more so, because you get to see the brains, commitment, and, yes, love behind the result. The naturalists at the GCNC are clearly doing the most with what they have, but their most is a heck of a lot. It's nice that they thought to have some native species, and some non-native species, so that my kids can get a sense of different habitats and where they are around the world.

In our search for a new nature center when we thought we'd be remaining in Virginia, we saw lots of places that were clearly better funded than the GCNC, with newer, snazzier exhibits, even multimedia components. But no experience came close, in terms of value to our family, to the GCNC. We had thought that the Blue Ridge Mountains would have been fertile ground for scientists to provide the ultimate nature education experience for kids and adults, but no dice. Clearly, we concluded, it's the people at the GCNC, who make the difference, who make the magic happen.

So what is the magic?

First, and most important, the staff at the GCNC -- Linda Bender, Liz Thompson, and Melissa Marszalek -- are naturalists. That is, they are scientists, not politically-motivated environmentalists. This makes such a difference when what you are seeking is nature information and appreciation rather than activism. (To me, nothing clutters up a peaceful walk in the woods more than doomsday hysteria; moreover, I don't believe it's appropriate to expose young children to admonitions that the world is going to hell in a handbasket and that it's the child's responsibility to do something about it.) The GCNC folks, though, seem to have no agenda other than facts, and appreciating nature's beauty and complexity. Science, to them, is interesting. It is so easy to see how much they love what they do, which alone would make it worth the time to drive out to Mumford.

Linda, Liz, and Melissa each have particular areas of expertise that make it fun to talk with each alone, one on one. Both as a whole and individually, my first impression of each of them was an amazing depth of knowledge about the natural world. These people know STUFF, a LOT of stuff that I don't know. But what makes this trio different from other educators we have encountered is their ability to answer an individual question with information that is not only to the point, but is easily understood, appreciate, and integrated by everyone listening--young kids, old kids, and adults. I have encountered few teachers with this unique quality.

As educators, the naturalists at the GCNC know how much kids love putting together the facts that make the big picture of life gradually come into focus. The fact is, Linda, Liz, and Melissa know how to convey the information so the kids sit up, pay attention, learn, and enjoy. That's part of the magic that is the GCNC. More comes from the hands-on encouragement each child receives.

I have seen countless occasions where Linda holds a group of 4- and 5-year-olds spellbound for two hours in the 3-week program for preschoolers they hold three times each year. I really have no idea how she does it, even though I have watched many times. And it's not just Liz's gee-whiz bat radar detector that kept all 40 of us (ages 2 to 70) under her spell at her annual sunset Bat Hike in early July last year on the GCNC's Oatka Creek property--it's the knowledge she and her colleagues are able to convey simply, readily, and without jargon. Neither my husband (a mathematician) nor I, nor our kids, have ever failed to learn a great deal at their Sunday 2pm hikes, each of which has a theme, held in all seasons. My kids attend several weeks of summer camp with them each year, for which they're willing to endure a 45-minute bus ride from the center of Rochester.

What do they offer?

Three-session weekly seasonal preschool classes: Snow Buddies, Spring Peepers, and Tiny Twigs

Week-long Summer Day Camps

Who are these people?

Meet the staff of the GCNC, and click on their names/photos for more information about their individual interests and areas of expertise.

Linda Bender is the Center's Director. More about her history and interests. Her nature name is "Snake," and she frequently writes for KidsOutAndAbout.com. Her most popular piece for us is Signs of Fall in Upstate New York.

Liz Thompson has been at the GCNC since 1999, after a few years teaching and supervising at Genesee Community College. She is mainly responsible for _____ and is the Center's resident bat expert. (Heck, she's our region's resident bat expert.)

Melissa Marszalek is _______ and ____________.

The Genesee Country Nature Center through the year

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