By Michelle Williams
Zion Nature Center is hosting its first ever Noon Year’s Eve event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 31. The event is open to the public and is designed for families with children too young to celebrate the New Year by staying awake until midnight.
Activities planned for the event include decorating party hats, a balloon drop and grape juice toast at noon, as well as setting “green” resolutions.
“We’re going to ask families to think up some green-type resolutions for the New Year –
whether that’s recycling, watching how much water they use, or picking up trash when they’re in the parks,” Nature Center Manager Mindy Murdock said. “Then we’ll probably have some sort of sweet for the kids to enjoy before they head home.”
Visitors will also have an opportunity to interact with the animals residing at the center.
“We will have staff on hand that will occasionally pull out some animals so they can get an up close look at turtles, snakes, lizards that we have here at the nature center,” Murdock said.
The event is among many other new programming events that have been added at the nature center over the last year.
“We’re trying to find new ways of getting the community involved in the Nature Center, as well as the entire parks department,” Murdock said. “Zionsville is a great community, and they love to come out and support community programs.”
The event was modeled after successful programs commonly held at zoos and parks across the nation. Space at the nature center, 690 Beech St., is limited, and registration is required. Visitors may register by emailing the total number of guests to [email protected].
