Misha McCrae, Executive Director of the Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Gardens, joined Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM yesterday morning to talk about what’s going on in the garden.
The annual migration of the birds is upon us and it’s time for Migration Mania.
McCrae said, “It is the annual migration, celebration of our annual migration of the birds that use this Botanical Garden as their stopping point on their 3,000 mile journey. This is our annual signature event. It is a community event sponsored by the community to help our kids have a good kickoff for springtime. Because, as you can tell, Spring has sprung, and the birds have already been singing for three weeks in the morning, the migration egg hunt is Saturday, from 10 to 2pm. We have 7,000 eggs going to be distributed throughout the gardens, not by Peter Cottontail, but we’re doing a substitute. We’re doing four and under at 11. So please be there early for the toddlers, and then it’s five to eight at 12 noon and nine to 12 year olds starts at one o’clock. 7000 eggs sounds like a lot, until you have 450 kids, then they disappear very fast. So please get there early. We’re going to have food and drink. Centennial Bank is donating their food as a community service project, face paint, crafts, arts, games, learn about migration, birds and butterflies. It’s going to be a great opportunity to bring the family out to enjoy the Botanical Garden on Saturday, March the 28th. It’s $5 per child and $10 for the family. Enjoy a wonderful day out in the garden, learn about the migration and find some of those Easter eggs.”
Volunteers are incredibly helpful.
McRae said, “We couldn’t survive without our volunteers. God bless our volunteers. It was a volunteer organization when we opened 90 years ago, and it continues to be supported by our volunteers. We have a lot of high school students that help us out with this program. Not only is it a community event, but our students get community service hours by volunteering for this garden. So if you’re looking for hours and you need them for your school, talk to the Botanical Garden.”
Monetary support is always needed for the garden.
McRae said, “We are a 501c3 which means we beg for money. We are the longest continuous running attraction in Key West Florida, and the only frost free tropical forest in the continental United States. We are sustained by our donors, our supporters and our grants. Please. If you’re interested in learning more, please check out our website. Always open up to me. You can reach me through the website or by calling the office. But we need our donations. We need our donors, and we need community support, not only for important events, like we have here for the children, which we have throughout the year, this is just one of them, but throughout the year to help support this 15 acre, 90 year old Botanical Garden. Contributions, signatures, float the boat over here, your contributions are greatly appreciated. Of course, tax deductible and not only has helped our garden get to 90 years, but also will help us for the next 90 thanks to our 99 year lease”
The garden also provides educational experiences for students.
McRae said, “We work directly with Monroe County School District, with home school, charter schools, private schools. We actually parlay with the teachers. Ask them what they need for their classes. Our program, our hybrid Living Lab, actually reaches pre K all the way to first year college now. Curriculum specific for the students and the class grades and it is offered free through our education department, which is grant funded and donation funded. We need a new education center. We need a state of art education center with classrooms and everything. We already have renderings. We have high hopes to create a new tree house at the Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Garden to actually facilitate indoor operations for the 3,500 plus students that come through this garden every year through our school district. Your donation dollars are going to help us build it. Your donation dollars are going to help us advocate the future of our students’ educational academics, and is also going to help this garden continue to blossom and grow throughout the next decades.”
The history of the garden is incredibly rich.
McRae said, “President Roosevelt, part of the New Deal, sent Oliver Stone down and his crew and back in 1934 to create the concept of the Botanical Garden. It was built in ‘35 and opened February 23 of 1936. It was to help the community, put people back to work, bring tourism dollars to Key West. And as you well know by now, our mission at the Botanical Garden is to continue to serve the community, and your support is definitely needed to help us in that mission.”
For more information, click here: https://www.keywest.garden/