(WNY News Now) – Jamestown, N.Y. – At Audubon Community Nature Center’s (ACNC) Audubon Lights – Friday and Saturday nights from March 22 through April 6, plus Sunday, April 7 – hundreds of visitors will experience a spectacular lights display plus live entertainment and snacks around an outdoor fire. 

More will be welcomed for the all-day Eclipse Watch Monday, April 8, with its horse-drawn wagon rides, live music, and food trucks.

Audubon Volunteer Coordinator Emily Nelson has the challenging task of finding enough volunteers to “staff” all these events.

“ACNC has an amazing crew of dedicated volunteers,” Nelson says, “but this is a unique time, and we need all the help we can get!”

Audubon Lights volunteers are needed for iPad admission sales, exhibit docents, snack stand sales and more, with parking volunteers needed for the April dates.

Volunteer needs for the 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. Eclipse Watch include exhibit docents, parking, horse-drawn carriage rides, and kitchen sales. There are 14 positions available, and each volunteer will get a free ACNC Eclipse T-Shirt, available only to staff and volunteers. All volunteers will be able to get to the perfect spot to watch the eclipse at 3:18 p.m.

If you can help, contact Nelson at ENelson@AudubonCNC.org or (716) 569-2345.

For general information on Audubon Lights and the Eclipse Watch, with a link to sign up for the horse-drawn wagon rides, go to AudubonCNC.org and click through Programs and Events.

Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, N.Y., and Warren, Pa. You can visit the nearly 600-acre nature preserve, check in on the live birds of prey, enjoy the natural play space, and hike over five miles of trails dawn until dusk daily for free.

The three-story Nature Center building houses interactive displays, a collection of live animals including the Hellbender exhibit, winners of the 2023 Nature Photography Contest, and the Blue Heron Gift Shop. Visitors are welcome Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m., and Sundays, 1–4:30 p.m. Nature Center members and SNAP/EBT cardholders have free building admission daily. Building admission is also free every Sunday for non-Nature Center members.

 To learn more about Audubon and its many programs, call (716) 569-2345, find Audubon Community Nature Center on Facebook, or visit AudubonCNC.org. Sunday, July 7 is the deadline for submitting or voting on entries in the 2024 Nature Photography Contest at GoGoPhotoContest.com/ACNCPhotoContest2024.

Audubon Community Nature Center builds and nurtures connections between people and nature by providing positive outdoor experiences, opportunities to learn about and understand the natural world, and knowledge to act in environmentally responsible ways.