As an avid Subaru fan and lover, as well as an important part of our #CompetitionSubaruFamily, it is no surprise to any member that #SubaruLovesTheEarth especially because Competition Subaru is an eco-friendly retailer! Although it isn't the philanthropic month for such, our dealership can never resist the call from cute animals or our local community! It is with great excitement that Competition Subaru of Smithtown would love to announcement our sponsorship of the Sweetbriar Nature Center!
What is the Sweetbriar Nature Center?
The Sweetbriar Nature Center is an open to the public Nature Center located in Smithtown, New York, and is established on the stunning, historical home of Edith and Vail Blydenburgh. About a mile from the Smithtown Train Station on Landing Ave., this giantatic eco-friendly resource utilizes 54 acres of Long Island land and spreads all the way to the Nissequogue River! Whenever you're in the Nesconset, Stony Brook or Centereach area, you are just a stone's throw away from the coolest Nature Center and cutest wildlife on Long Island! From gardens, woodlands, fields and wetland habitats, hundreds of species of both animals and plantlife make peaceful homes here. As long-term residents of Saint James, Stony Brook, Great River, and all of Long Island, we can attest to how perfect of a permanent home our special island located in New York can be. It is an honor to share our beautiful home with the Sweetbriar Nature Center and the adorable animals of all shapes and sizes in which they aid!
What Does Sweetbriar Nature Center Do?
The Sweetbriar Nature Center is always striving to care for and mend furry friends, offer fantastic and fun indoor and outdoor activities as well as curate and host events made for expanding horizons and enriching local culture. Outside of caring for domesticated wildlife and releasing un-domesticated wildlife, some unwell visitors turn into house-mates for life! The Sweetbriar Nature Center is responsible for taking care of found babies, animals and local wildlife and returning them safely and soundly to their preferred nature habitat. If these animals are unfortunately too far-along for freedom, the Sweetbriar Nature Center will be their forever home! Additionally, sometimes the critters that come by don't need to be taken to the Sweetbriar Nature Center!
"Not everything that comes into our hospital needs rescuing. As a matter of fact, the majority of wildlife situations that folks encounter can be resolved with little or no intervention at all!...How do you know when to intervene? Always best to make a phone call to a wildlife rescue center to get advice." -Sweetbriar Nature Center
It is with great news that when a new friend visits this selfless non-profit organization, the Sweetbriar Nature Center sometimes doesn't have much to do! Varying on what species and what injury (if any) has occurred, periodically, Sweetbriar Nature Center's biggest role in aiding these animals is informing the public on the correct thing(s) to do. It warms our heart knowing that sometimes all the Sweetbriar Nature Center needs to do is safely release the animal back into their preferred habitat. Thank you so much to Sweetbriar Nature Center for always taking the most eco-friendly route and having everyone's best interests at heart! (That reminds us of the Subaru Solterra....)
What Does the Sweetbriar Nature Center Offer?
The Sweetbriar Nature Center has over 6 different hiking trails to explore the many terrains of Long Island!
The Volunteer Garden is a native-based garden surrounded by stained glass windows and seasonal, vibrant greenery that is tended to by volunteers. Thank you so much to the Long Islanders who dedicate their freetime to making both Smithtown and Long Island a prettier, healthier place to live!
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The Butterfly Vivarium is open from June 10th, 2023 to September. Children, adults and seniors can enjoy viewing these fairy-like creatures up close and carefully!
The Discovery Area is open year round. This is an outdoor play-area is for those who would enjoy spending time in Sweetbriar's sandbox, hobbit-house, see-saw, slide, outdoor painting and music station.
The Reptile Room is all about slinking, slimy sidekicks! This room is located inside of the Sweetbriar Nature Center and is home to many scaly and slippery friends. From snakes to snapping turtles, this room is full of surprises!
At the Sweetbriar Nature Center, the Art Center offers various events, classes and instructionals. Check their available Art Events through their website here.
The Rainforest Room is a relaxing, jungle-themed room where curious adults and courageous children can find exploration!
The Sweetbriar Photo Club is actively accepting members and is described as "the camera club for everyone"!
Founded in 1997 by Ed Sambolin, the Sweetbriar Photo Club meets in-person at Sweetbriar Nature Center and online via Zoom. This welcoming group of casual photography fans has talents ranging in all levels, from beginner to experienced.
"Our club enjoys educational activities, guest speakers, occasional weekend field trips, photo critiques and more...We feel that learning from one another is key to advancing our photographic skills." -Sweetbriar Photo Club
The Sweetbriar Photo Club is passionate about advancing their photographic skills, sharing experiences, meeting people with similar interests and hobbies and bringing their own vision and opinions into the Photography Club! The Sweetbriar Photo Club works closely with the Photographic Society of America (PSA) and every month members can participate in the PSA's Monthly Judging.
To join the Sweetbriar Photo Club, follow this link!
Volunteering at Sweetbriar Nature Center
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Internships are available at Sweetbriar Nature Center! As some small animals require a grand amount of assistance, some requiring feeding every 15-20 minutes from dusk-dawn.
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The Sweetbriar Nature Center offers informative programs for our local community! Whether it be a:
Virtual Program, School Program, Library Program, Adult Program, Scout Program, Meeting Animals via Zoom, Animal Encounters and Wildlife Experiences, Children's Environmental Education Days and Weeks or Birthday Parties, the Sweetbriar Nature Center is excited for all ages to partake in their natural science education services! Submit your Program and Party Deposit online through their website! If you have any questions in regards to their informative offerings, you can request a program today!
How Did We Join Forces?
Competition Subaru of Smithtown had the incredible opportunity to take a tour of the Sweetbriar Nature Center! Thanks to the generosity of the Sweetbriar Nature Center, our employees experienced touring the majestic and historical home of Vail and Edith Blydenburgh, the Sweetbriar Center's grounds, viewing fragile little baby animals, learning about our local environment, were taught where various critters call home, took a tour of the Butterfly Garden before it was open to the public and even got to set a baby rabbit free!
Thank you so much to the Sweetbriar Nature Center for their generosity. It was an amazing experience being your guests!
The 2023 Butterfly & Bird Festival
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The Butterfly & Bird Festival took place on June 10th from 10am-4pm! The entire day was full of awesomely educational and entertaining events! Competition Subaru of Smithtown was so proud to be an avid supporter and sponsor!
This celebration marks their yearly launch of the open-to-the-public Butterfly Vivarium! As the Sweetbriar Nature Center is a non-profit organization, this event is equally as important for its humans as this is one of their biggest fundraising events of the year!
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Everyone in attendance browsed crafted goods from local vendors, enjoyed tasty food from local food trucks and listened to and watched the talented musical performances from Native American dancers and singers from the Shinnecock Nation! Additionally, residents were able to stop by the Sweetbriar Nature Center to see the ALL-ELECTRIC Subaru Solterra up close and in person!
Future Events with the Sweetbriar Nature Center
The Sweetbriar Nature Center offers many exciting events throughout the year! Although some of these are weeks aways, Competition Subaru of Smithtown suggests signing up as soon as you confirm your desired attendance. *Events may sell out!* Click the event you're curious about to be led to the event's full information.
Even though several of these events are a handful of days away, a large majority of the events Sweetbriar offers are already sold out! As of right now, June 20th, all of the above events are still accepting participants! Our passionate community loves coming together to help love the Earth, better our community and beautify our one and only environment! We hope everyone who partakes has an incredible time for an even better cause! We cannot thank the like-minded individuals enough for constantly and consistently supporting the Sweetbriar Nature Center.
Previous Events with Sweetbriar Nature Center
To gather further insight in regards to what a continued treasure the Sweetbriar Nature Center is for Smithtown, St. James and the Long Island community, Competition Subaru of Smithtown would love to shine some light on their previous fundraising and open-to-the-public events!
View this post on InstagramA post shared by ECSS Sweetbriar Wildlife Rehab (@sweetbriarnaturecenter)
View this post on InstagramA post shared by ECSS Sweetbriar Wildlife Rehab (@sweetbriarnaturecenter)
View this post on InstagramA post shared by ECSS Sweetbriar Wildlife Rehab (@sweetbriarnaturecenter)
View this post on InstagramA post shared by ECSS Sweetbriar Wildlife Rehab (@sweetbriarnaturecenter)
Aside from the annual opening of their Butterfly Vivarium, Sweetbriar Nature Center offers many themed events throughout the seasons! We are so lucky to have such an eco-friendly gem nestled perfectly on the best Island possible! We wholeheartedly thank every employee, intern, volunteer and visitor of the Sweetbriar Nature Center! This grand safe haven would not be possible without the dedication and passion of all of those involved!
How You Can Help- It Comes Naturally!
You can aid the Sweetbriar Nature Center in multiple ways! From volunteering, donating, memberships, sponsoring, visiting the center, interning, and more, all hands are welcomed aboard deck to help coddle the cutest critters!
There is always a great reason to visit the Sweetbriar Nature Center- there is always something exciting happening! From the wild wildlife, to the organized events, programs and Discovery Weeks, the Sweetbriar Nature Center's doors are almost always open! To gain more education, we suggest following the Sweetbriar Nature Center on Instagram. With almost daily posts, updates and informative captions, supporting our close-knit community is a lot easier when you're informed! While you're there, you can follow Competition Subaru of Smithtown on Instagram as well as Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin! Thank you once more to the Sweetbriar Nature Center for all of their dedication, hard-work and immense passion for our environment and for every living thing that residents in it! Join Sweetbriar Nature Center in exuding eco-friendliness effortlessly with a Subaru Solterra today!
