Conservancy, Wings of Wonder host programs on Saturdays

Looking to see a show on Saturday night?

How about one with nine main actors — all of them disabled?

Such a show is being made possible every Saturday though a partnership between the Leelanau Conservancy and the Wings of Wonder bird rehab center in Empire. Bird specialist Rebecca Lessard will be providing shows every Saturday night through June (with the exception of May 24) at the Conservancy’s latest land preservation effort, the DeYoung farm off Cherry Bend Road in Elmwood Township. Shows run from 5-7 p.m.

“Our first Saturday, there were probably six people who stayed for the entire first hour,” said Lessard. “They got to ask a gazillion questions, and have an intimate, small program.”

Stars of the show are nine disabled raptors who would not survive on their own. They range in size from two tiny screech owls — tipping the scale at one pound, combined — to Simon, the turkey vulture who would have a 7-food wing span if not for a birth defect that left him without several primary feathers. Simon was found south of Empire in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

“They all have permanent disabilities that prevent them from going back to the wild,” said Lessard.

The Wings of Wonder program helps to fulfill a commitment by the Conservancy to offer ongoing environmental education programs at the DeYoung farm, Lessard said.

The partnership could grow, she added, to include a permanent home at the farm for the Wings of Wonder operation, which is now located in and around Lessard’s house in Empire.

The DeYoung programs will continue through June, after which the day may change. Lessard, who works for Munson Medical Center, also plays the hammer dulcimer with a Celtic group which is often booked for weddings.

An open house has been planned for 2-5 p.m. June 23 at the DeYoung farm when visitors may make raptor nesting boxes. “They can take them home, or put them up on the DeYoung property,” said Lessard.

Looking for more opportunities to learn about Wings of Wonder? Check out the following:

• Nature North III will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 19, at the Traverse City Civic Center. It will be free to the public and include four other Leelanau County organizations in the Conservancy, Leelanau Conservation District, Inland Seas Education Association and Saving Birds Thru Habitat. Lessard’s live raptor program will begin at 12:30 p.m. The event will offer many opportunities for children.

• Wings of Wonder also provides a program on Wednesdays at the top of Crystal Mountain.

• Check out their web page at wingsofwonder.org