Hernando Audubon Society (HAS) was  the first and original  supporter of the Chinsegut Nature Center who put on the Birding and Wildlife Festival this past weekend.  One of the ways Hernando Audubon has supported the festival  in the past few years has been to  supply 50 blue bird box kits that kids could put together under the direction of Andy Maywalt and Allen Miller. Allen, the premier volunteer bird box builder for HAS, made the kits. As Mary Dowdell, President of HAS said, "There was definitely a lot of pounding going on and at one point it even sounded synchronized." The event was well attended and Audubon was happy to participate. Fun was had by all. During the festival this year, many birdhouses were sold to help raise money for bird seed for the Center. Several HAS members also put on programs for Chinsegut. Bev Hansen gave a wonderful program on hummingbirds, Clay Black headed over the mist netting program, and a few members were part of a puppet show. The bird calling contest, as always, brought out the competitiveness in everyone.

Since the beginning, the idea,  was to have the land to build a nature center for our community - The original idea for the center came from long time active HAS members Steve Fickett and Lisa Von Bronovsky. Their hard work, perseverance and financial support made it a reality. In support Hernando Audubon has funded one-third of the money to help in the building of the Center. The community will benefit greatly from the Chinesgut Nature Center and

HAS feels very fortunate to have such an asset in their area, which fits nicely with their mission :

The mission of Hernando Audubon Society is to promote an awareness and appreciation of nature, to preserve and protect wildlife and natural ecosystems and to encourage responsible environmental stewardship.