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In This Issue:

	ECHO is Expanding, Thanks to "The Little Fund"
	Presidential Visit Highlights Sister Lake Similarities
	Make Way for Turtles
	Don’t Just Eat, Think!
	Friends & Sponsors

ECHO is Expanding, Thanks to "The Little Fund"

When the idea for creating a lake aquarium and science center in Burlington was conceived more than a decade ago, the vision of one man, George E. Little, Jr., was at the heart of ECHO’s mission to educate and delight visitors about the Ecology, Culture, History and Opportunity for stewardship of the Lake Champlain Basin.

On Tuesday, October 13, at 9:30 a.m., we will announce major support of The Little Fund: Honoring George E. Little, Jr.’s Vision for ECHO’s Strategic Innovation and Growth on the Leahy Center environmental campus. We invite you - our Members, supporters, and friends - to come to ECHO, join in the celebration, and learn about our plans for expansion, new exhibits, and programs!

The event’s dignitaries will include: U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy; philanthropist Lois McClure; Tom Little, son of George E. Little, Jr. and Chair of the Little Fund, and other Little family members; members of the Burlington High School Class of 1939; Marley Young, the youngest ECHO donor; the ECHO Board of Directors; and ECHO Staff and Volunteers.

Please join us on Tuesday to learn more about our plans! For more information, please contact Director of Development Kate Villa at kvilla@echovermont.org or 802.864.1848 ext. 118.

Pictured: (top) Photo Courtesy of: Nick LaVecchia; George Little, Jr., and Marley Young; photo courtesy of the Burlington Free Press.

Presidential Visit Highlights Sister Lake Similarities

Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, the President of the Republic of Macedonia, says his nation shares a special relationship with Vermont. His landlocked Eastern European country and our landlocked Northeastern state both boast beautiful mountains and sparkling lakes.

"What you have and what we have makes us feel that we really are bound together," he said through an interpreter at a welcome ceremony at Burlington International Airport on Thursday, September 17, according to an article in the Burlington Free Press.

A visit to ECHO was on the President’s agenda during his recent visit to the United States. He arrived with his staff on Sunday, September 20, for a special tour led by ECHO’s Executive Director Phelan Fretz.

Here, President Ivanov discovered another connection: ECHO’s popular FrogWorld exhibit includes a European green toad, a frog species native to his country. ECHO Environmental Exhibit Specialist Brian Swisher organized a special frog feeding for the President and his staff.

President Ivanov and Fretz also enjoyed some end-of-summer sunshine from the Leahy Center’s upper deck, where they discussed the similarities between Lake Champlain and Macedonia’s Lake Ohrid, both of which are large, deep-water Lakes that straddle international borders. (Macedonia shares Orhid with Albania.)

"You could see the joy in the President and his delegation as we walked onto the outside deck," Fretz says. "They said it felt just like home."

Lake Champlain and Lake Ohrid are "Sister Lakes" — linked through research and public education goals that share information, experiences, and successful strategies for conservation and sustainable development.

"The President’s passion for education and the important role places like ECHO can play was very evident as we shared stories about raising boys who are now headed off to college," says Fretz.

President Ivanov was in Vermont to reaffirm his country’s 14-year partnership with the Vermont National Guard and expand other business, cultural, and educational opportunities, according to the Burlington Free Press.

Pictured: (top) Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov (at left) chats with ECHO Executive Director Phelan Fretz; (lower) President Ivanov snaps a photo of Lake Champlain with his cell phone; photos courtesy of the Vermont National Guard.

Make Way for Turtles

ECHO Members are invited to join State Biologist Steve Parren, Program Coordinator of the Nongame & Natural Heritage Program of the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife, for this year’s Annual Autumn Turtle Beach Clean-up Day on Saturday, October 24, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Families are welcome.

During this work day, Parren and ECHO Member Volunteers will prepare stretches of beach at North Hero State Park and sites in Swanton, Vermont, for the turtle egg-laying season next June. The threatened Spiny softshell turtle is Parren's particular concern, and its nests are found on both beach sites, along with those of Map, Snapping, and Painted turtles.

While most hatchlings will have crawled up and out of the ground and into the Lake by the end of September, some late-hatching young may still be underground. Volunteers often find young turtles as they pull up the current season’s plant growth from the shale pebble beaches. The Lake is now becoming too cold for them, so they will be brought to ECHO for the winter months. If the group recovers some baby turtles, which is likely, Parren will talk about them and answer questions.

ECHO Member Volunteers are asked to arrive at North Hero State Park between 10 and 11 a.m., as the group may move to other sites when we complete work in North Hero. Participants should bring warm clothes to layer, sturdy and comfortable shoes, work gloves, a trowel and/or hand cultivator, rain gear, and lunch. Volunteers are free to leave at any time.

Directions from Burlington (click on link for a Google map). As you approach North Hero State Park, you will see the entrance and sign to the left. Drive to end of road, always bearing right. Please arrive between 10 and 11 a.m. For more information, ECHO Members may contact Eric Lazarus at 802.658.8505 or ericlazarus@myfairpoint.net.

To join this group and receive special Members-only news and benefits, please become an ECHO Member (if you are not already). To learn about Membership, visit www.echovermont.org/join, call 802.864.1848 ext. 100, or visit ECHO’s Front Desk.

Pictured: A baby Spiny softshell turtle that over-wintered at ECHO; photo by ECHO Animal Care Staff.

Don’t Just Eat, Think!

How often do you really think about your food — how it gets to your plate and where meal trash goes? ECHO’s Think! Café not only serves up tasty lunches, but also offers fun and educational ways to consider the environmental impact of your meal.

Situated right on the Burlington Waterfront, Think! also has "the best views in town," according to Café Coordinator Millie Richard — who enjoys the bright, airy, naturally-lighted space on sunny days and particularly likes watching dramatic thunderstorms move across the Lake on stormy days.

Think! — which is open year round from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and doesn’t require ECHO admission — operates on the same environmentally-friendly principles that are central to ECHO’s mission. The menu features fresh local and seasonal ingredients, delicious homemade dishes prepared by chefs and bakeries in the greater Burlington community, and signature items from local partners including Sugarsnap and Klinger’s Bakery.

Think! Café opened nearly a year and a half ago, giving Richard some time to observe user trends and fine-tune the menu.

"Our paninis are really popular," says Richard, "and the chocolate chip cookies have a following. Some people just come in to have [Green Mountain] coffee or a cookie, and use the free Wi-Fi." She adds that Waterfront neighbors often conduct small business lunches at Think!, and hungry boaters seeking a snack after docking outside are frequent visitors.

She recently began offering inexpensive children’s specials on preschool programming days — StoryTime with a Twist on Tuesdays and Pint-sized Science on Fridays — to better accommodate families wishing to spend several hours at ECHO.

Behind the scenes, Richard and her staff follow best green practices possible, using energy-efficient equipment and green-seal certified cleaners. Out on the Café floor, the dishes and utensils are reusable, the unbleached napkins are recycled, tabletop trivia cards and Café trays offer environmentally-themed "while-you-wait" activities, and displays designed by ECHO’s Director of New Julie Silverman, and created by Montpelier artist Dave Blumenthal, encourage diners to compost and recycle.

"Some people are ecstatic about the idea of composting lunch trash," says Richard, indicating the Recycle-&-Compost Center. "Kids really latch onto the idea — and the way Julie designed it, people can’t seem to walk past without stopping."

She points out that the Recycle-&-Compost Center’s waste bins feature different-sized openings. Large compost and recycle bin openings subtly encourage diners to use these options, while a smaller trash bin opening discourages wastefulness. An interactive scale allows users to weigh any trash left from lunch.

Think! Cafe’s green mission includes countertops made of pressed recycled paper from Planet Hardwood, plywood detailing fabricated from wheat straw, and whey-based wood finish from Vermont Natural Coatings. Three eye-catching mobiles, created by renowned Vermont artist Gordon Auchincloss, illustrate the idea of local food cycles and add a touch of contemporary whimsy to the space — inviting diners to linger and enjoy the aesthetics as well as culinary experiences. All of this is within ECHO’s award-winning architecture, the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified building in Vermont.

Feeling hungry? Think about joining us at ECHO — and find out what are we Think!-ing about today on Twitter, @ThinkCafe.

Pictured: Think! Café Coordinator Millie Richard.; photo by Taylor Prior/ECHO Think! Café Staff. Think! Café’s Recycle-&-Compost Center; photo by ECHO Staff.
 

Friends and Sponsors

SUPPORT ECHO ON TOURISM SITES

ECHO, like so many of Vermont's attractions, relies heavily on the tourism audience. Many travelers these days are choosing destinations via the Internet and through online reviews by the general public, so we could use your grassroots support! Please visit your favorite travel website and add another positive voice to our attraction reviews — and encourage relatives or friends who have experienced ECHO to do so too! This greatly helps bring folks to both Vermont and to ECHO. The following are a couple of websites to get you started — thanks in advance!

IgoUgo
Find & Go Seek
TripAdvisor
Yahoo! Travel

Photo: © Jeff Clarke 2007

WPTZ/NewsChannel 5 Live at ECHO

Mark your calendars to watch WPTZ/NewsChannel 5 on the second Thursday of every month, when Chief Meteorologist Tom Messner broadcasts his Precision Weather forecast live from ECHO during "First at Five," "5:30 Now," and "NewsChannel 5 at 6PM."

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Update Staff:

Editor: Steven Leibman, Director of Marketing and Communications
Associate Editor: Lani Stack and Todd Carroll, Marketing and Communications Coordinators
Design: Travis Cook, Information Technology Coordinator; Erica Viscio, ECHO Marketing and Communications Intern