Members of the Salt Marsh Alliance (SMA) and the Urban Park Rangers welcomed the community into the Salt Marsh Nature Center, located at 3302 Avenue U, on Saturday afternoon, December 6th, to celebrate their silver jubilee in a very special way: a gallery viewing.
Since the Salt Marsh Nature Center opened its doors, 25 years ago, on Earth Day 2000, it has served as a hub of great educational and recreational importance and provided a kind of window into the wild and majestic wetland ecosystem that exists all around it.
In an effort to foster appreciation for, and capture the incredible beauty of, this precious natural environment, the SMA Photography Competition, which began on May 1st, inspired professionals and amateurs alike to submit their most stunning photos of Marine Park. The SMA encouraged contestants to snap photos of nature, seasonal changes, local wildlife and even areas of historical interest — and boy, did they ever.
About 55 photos were submitted and reviewed by respected photographer and contest judge, Fritz Weiss, who ultimately selected four winners: William Douglas King (1st Place), Max Levinton (2nd Place), Isaac Michalowski (3rd Place) and Jana Broskina (Honorable Mention).
As visitors to the Salt Marsh Nature Center entered through the foyer, they were met with a display of the winning compositions and were invited to enjoy a slide presentation that included all the photos that had been entered into the contest. According to the SMA, the presentation will also be available for viewing at marineparkalliance.org in coming weeks.
