Jamestown, N.Y. – Every spring since 2003 Audubon Community Nature Center Education Staff have raised scholarship funds through their Birdathon on the first Saturday in May.
Participants look for as many species as possible over a 24-hour period, and generous supporters pledge an amount, either per species or in total. One result is $500 for the Ryan Exline Memorial Scholarship.
This year’s participants, who wore masks when not able to maintain distance and birded in small groups, spotted 94 species. The 2020 Ryan Exline Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Hannah Hornyak, who took part in the event.
The daughter of Tom and Charlene Hornyak, Hannah is a graduate of Jamestown High School and plans to attend university in Montana to earn an environmental degree. In addition to ACNC, she has volunteered with the Roger Tory Peterson Institute and the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy. A nature lover, Hannah has a particular interest in reptiles and amphibians.
This scholarship is named in memory of one of its earliest recipients. Ryan Exline was an integral part of the Audubon family for many years, where he assisted with gardening, eagle care, live animal care, and educational programs. A resident of Russell, Pa., he was pursuing a master’s degree at Duke University when he died in a car accident. His love of nature and of nurturing future generations of “nature nerds” lives on through this scholarship.
Scholarship applicants must be local residents pursuing a degree in the natural sciences. Recipients must be passionate about the natural world.
Previous scholarship winners are Diego Rey, Christina McMillan, Heather Zimba, Taylor West, Brandon Allen, Connor Clendenen, Allison Cramer, Alex Kulakowski, Elyse Johnson, Brenton Maille, Alyssa D’Alessandro, Alexa Vazquez, Tricia Bergstue, Karen Eckstrom, Bill Langworthy, Rex Everett, Ryan Exline, and Eve Gaus.
Donations are still welcome to the Ryan Exline Memorial Fund. Any amount raised above the scholarship is designated toward making improvements to Audubon’s live animal habitats. This year Ebenezer the Wood Turtle’s habitat will be upgraded. Donations can be made at AudubonCNC.org/Donate.
Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, just east of Route 62 between Warren, Pa., and Jamestown, N.Y. Although the Nature Center building is closed until further notice due to COVID-19 per New York State restrictions, visitors are welcome to walk the trails and view Liberty, Audubon’s non-releasable Bald Eagle, from dawn to dusk daily while practicing safe social distancing measures. The Blue Heron Gift Shop is also open for drive-thru sales; visit AudubonCNC.org/Shop for more information.
To learn more about Audubon and its many programs, call (716) 569-2345 during business hours, visit AudubonCNC.org, or find Audubon Community Nature Center on Facebook.
Audubon Community Nature Center builds and nurtures connections between people and nature by providing positive outdoor experiences, opportunities to learn about and understand the natural world, and knowledge to act in environmentally responsible ways.
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