Make PRAC your staycation destination this spring!
Pascagoula River Audubon Center
Moss Point, MS
kayak
Make PRAC your Staycation Destination!
With gas prices soaring, there is a need to find family activities close to home. When making those plans, remember to add the Pascagoula River Audubon Center to your list of destinations.

A visit to PRAC is an affordable, local option with admission at $5 or less per person with a $15 family day pass. Member admission is always FREE. The itinerary for the visit can lead in many directions depending on your taste.

Kayaking and pedal boating are a huge attraction at PRAC. The fleet includes four tandem kayaks,10 single kayaks and a pedal boat. Rentals are for up to three hours of kayaking at $35 for a tandem, $20 for a single and $40 for the pedal boat. Member rates are $10, $5 and $20 respectively.

A day at PRAC can include a picnic breakfast or lunch, bird watching with complimentary binocular rental, a leisurely stroll around the grounds observing native flora and fauna, viewing local art in the gallery, perusing the birding library in the Boy Scout Hut, and playing in the nature playground. A children’s area upstairs is popular for young children along with a video of the Singing River playing on loop for adults.

Make a date with nature today! And it isn’t too late to become a member.  Annual family memberships are $50. Click here to join our flock!
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2022 Discovery Camps Filling Quickly...ACT NOW!
School will be ending soon, and children will be “bored” staying at home. Help fight boredom and add in a bit of nature education with a week of Discovery Camp at the Pascagoula River Audubon Center.  We have spaces available for children from 5 to 14, but space is filling quickly.All children participating in camps will explore the natural world through discovery and guided hands-on activities. Our themes and activities revolve around the Pascagoula River and local bayou ecosystem. Each camper will receive a summer camp tee shirt and take home a sack filled with memories and artifacts!

Summer camps for children entering Kindergarten through 2nd grade will be the week of June 27 and July 18.  Camp for children entering 3rd through 5th grades will be the week of  July 11. Middle School Adventure Camp will be the week of July 18.

Camp tuition is $150 for all participants. $135 for member campers. Payment for all camps will be due by June 15, 2022.

Click HERE to learn more about the daily schedule and click HERE to register on Camp Docs.
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Sandra Eisler to host Art Camp at PRAC
Keeping little hands busy during the summer is a struggle for most parents.  Along with Audubon camps this summer, PRAC is also home to Art Camp offered by Sandra Eisler.

The three-day Art Camps are June 22-24 and July 6-8 from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.  The camp tuition is $115 and includes all supplies.  Space is limited, so reserving spots for children ages 7 to 12 is imperative.  A $10 reservation fee is all it takes, and the remainder of the camp fee is due to the artist on the first day of camp.  

To reserve a spot, choose your dates and click HERE!
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Audubon Volunteers Planted Important Bird Area in Gulfport
On the heels of nesting season, Audubon Delta has recently completed a restoration project to restore bird habitats along a stretch of recreational beach in Harrison County.  This work was done in a globally recognized zone known as an Important Bird Area, Tern Sanctuary.  This location typically hosts up to 500 breeding pairs of Least Terns.  

The project was a joint venture between the Harrison County Sand Beach Authority and Gulfport High School to stabilize the beach, encourage dune formation and provide coverage for newly hatched Least Tern Chicks.

The necessity of this work was due to the impacts of Hurricanes Ida and Zeta along with the numerous tropical storms that have moved across these areas in the past two years.  This summer, Audubon staff will spend the time collecting data at this site to assess the effects of dune restoration on vulnerable species like the Least Tern.  
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Watch Mom Bloom for Mother's Day
There is no way to truly honor Mom on only one day a year, but Mother’s Day provides a great opportunity to show not only moms but also mother figures just how special they are.

The Hidden Heron Gift Shop at PRAC has a wonderful variety of inexpensive and one-of-a-kind items for mom.  The items range from locally-made hand towels to pottery and to bird houses. Along with these items, the Chemours Native Nursery has a large variety of native shrubs and perennials available for purchase as well.

Feel free to stop by to peruse the inventory to pick the items that are best for your mom.  
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PRAC Recognized as Jackson County Outpost

PRAC Manager Susan Stachowski and Education Manager Katie Fetzer recently accepted a certificate naming the Center as a Jackson County Outpost business.

Gulf Coast Outpost is a recognition program for nature-based tourism businesses on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. This voluntary program recognizes those businesses who are knowledgeable about the coast’s natural environment and take steps to protect it by fostering environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation and conservation.

Businesses who receive the Gulf Coast Outpost recognition can include eco-tours, locally owned outfitters, charter boat operators, tour guides, eco-lodges and agritourism entities. Owners and operators are required to participate in training focused on the sustainability and stewardship of the environment and our natural resources.

The Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area, managed by the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, is a partnership of communities, businesses, governmental agencies, non-profit organizations, and individuals who value the region's rich cultural and environmental diversity, history, natural beauty, and traditions. This partnership presents the Mississippi Gulf Coast's distinctive story in terms of its national significance.

By visiting any of the Mississippi Gulf Coast businesses listed below you will be joining us in celebrating the Coast’s natural resources. Click here to learn about other outpost facilities.

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Solitario Art Remains on Exhibit at PRAC
The Billy Solitario exhibit remains on display in the Moss Point Fine Art Gallery, and a new shipment of the local cookbook with him has just arrived.

All art in the gallery is for purchase at various prices, but the cookbook, On the Coast sells for $39.  While it is illustrated by Solitario, the authors are local foodies Matthew Mayfield and Troy Gilbert.  

For more information about the artist, click here. 
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Wanted: Teachers Seeking Geo-Inquiry Skills...and get paid!
This summer, the Mississippi Geographic Alliance is partnering with the Pascagoula River Audubon Center for an educator Geo Institute.

This institute will be held from June 7-10 at the Pascagoula River Audubon Center. By participating in this Geo Institute, educators will learn how to conduct a MGA Student Geo Camp either in their classrooms or in their school district. Using MGA's online learning portal along with sessions, lesson plans and activities, educators will gain tools and have access to resources, materials and supplies to run a successful Student Geo Camp.

The Geo Inquiry process engages students with field study, data collection, making connections and developing solutions. The focus of these Student Geo Camps can be environmental, historical or a combination of both of these.

MGA incorporates MS science and social studies standards into the lesson plans, session and activities for their Student Geo Camps. Stay tuned for more information.

*For full participation in the institute, educators will receive a $200 stipend, and CEU's will be available from the University of Mississippi at no cost to the participant.

The hours of the institute will be from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. each day. **Materials, a classroom geography kit and lunch (daily) will be
provided at no cost to the participant.

*MGA will conduct a Student Geo Camp the following week in the same location and will ask up to 5 educators from this Geo Institute to work at the Student Geo Camp. The stipend for working during the Student Geo Camp will be $500 and CEU's will be available from The University of Mississippi at no cost to the participant.

Space is limited and selected educators will be notified via email. Teachers should apply by clicking here!
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Are YOU Ready for the Summer?
Teachers? Duh!

As in the past three years, PRAC is seeking teachers to help facilitate the 2022 Discovery Camps AND offering CEUs.

PRAC is working with the University of Southern Mississippi for the CEU application that would grant teachers 2.5 CEUs per week. The teacher hours would be 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and would require outdoor work facilitating activities and monitoring children.  

Any teacher interested in earning CEUs as a camp counselor should complete this form. Any other adults interested in working as a camp volunteer should email us at prac@audubon.org.
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Supplies Needed!
As PRAC continues to welcome children to Discovery Camps, the staff is committed to keeping tuition fees affordable.  Anyone who is interested in providing supplies for camp, please see the list.  Items may be dropped off at PRAC, or give us a call for pick up!
Help FY22 End as the Best Year Yet!
Fiscal Year 2022 is shaping up to be the best year ever since opening the doors in 2015. This success is only possible because of our current flock that continues to expand daily.  Join our flock and help us end FY22 great and kick off a great FY23.
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Pascagoula River Audubon Center
5107 Arthur St., Moss Point, MS 39563
(228) 475-0825 | pascagoula.audubon.org

© 2024 National Audubon Society, Inc.

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