By Jeannine Gage, Staff Writer of Hometown News | Read Original Article

Lou King says the Marine Discovery Center could not have a more perfect name.

“It’s so much fun to see the faces on the kids when they see something they’ve never seen before,” said Ms. King, the Center’s education coordinator. “They are truly making these great discoveries.”

And it’s not just children who are learning about the environment around them.

“It’s amazing the people who come in here, even the ones who live here, and really don’t know anything about the lagoon,” she said. “It’s our mission to get people interested in the lagoon and to protect and preserve it through education.”

The Marine Discovery Center, a private, non-profit organization, was founded 10 years ago by local environmentalists and civic leaders, including former mayor Jim Vandergrifft. Its offering include summer camps and field trips for kids, eco-tours around the Indian River Lagoon on which it is situated, kayak tours and rentals, and a water taxi, which offers riders a scenic trip to Ponce Inlet or the beachside.

Mayor Sally Mackay said the center is a “key to the vitality of our community.”

“We live on the water, it is our most precious commodity,” she said. “So the work they do at the Marine Discovery Center is extremely important.”

Environmental experts agree.

“It’s a tremendous asset for the community,” said Brett Boston, director of the Wildlife Foundation of Florida. “Anytime you have an organization so focused on outreach and education, it’s a good thing for the local environment and the residents.”

The Marine Discovery Center is housed in modest facilities. Two 50-foot long trailers set in an L-shape hold a classroom, office and small gift shop. Nearby, in a building shared with city administration offices, a small lab holds several microscopes lining a long counter, murals of sea life painted on the walls and a small built-in tank in a center table.

“We scrape plankton off the docks and bring it in here to look at it under the microscopes,” Ms. King said. “The kids are like ‘Whoa, there’s stuff living in there.’”

While the center’s visitors are made up mostly of children (there’s even a program for 2-4-year-olds called Sea Squirts), many adults come for the eco-tours, including twilight and sunset tours, and other offerings.

Roy Pancoast recently stopped by the center to rent a kayak to use while visiting his parents in Oak Hill.

“I’m a birder, so I enjoy being outdoors,” the Washington state resident said. “And it’s a great way to spend time with my dad.”

Mr. Pancoast and his parents also enjoy the water taxi.

“I was just thinking if I decide to retire in Florida, I’d love to come and work on the water taxi,” he said.

Marilyn Sullivan, who runs the kayak tours of the lagoon, said the trips are full of surprises.

“Even the people who live here don’t realize how beautiful it is; it always amazes them,” she said. “And it’s so great when we see dolphins or manatees. You can’t get any closer to them than in a kayak.”

While there’s plenty of room on the river for kayaks, center officials said the landlocked facilities are bursting at the seams. But relief may come soon through a partnership with the proposed eco-center and fish hatchery that will operate from the old New Smyrna Beach High School site, just across the North Causeway.

Marine Discovery Center executive director Fielding Cooley said instead of competition, the new eco-center will create a “synergy” with the existing facility.

“We have various niches to occupy and both of us will benefit,” Mr. Cooley said. “Our biggest benefit will be the additional space. We don’t have the facilities to grow. We have the demand, but not the ability.”

Mr. Boston of the Wildlife Foundation of Florida, which will operate the eco-center, said he is excited about the partnership.

“They’re going to be our main resource for outreach to the community because they’ve already established that,” he said. “And their ability to mobilize citizen volunteers is very important, too.”

Ms. Mackay said she believes the partnership of the two environmental centers will help the local environment and the economy.

“It’s going to add a diversity and richness to what we have to offer here,” she said. “It will give us resources over and above other communities.”

Mr. Cooley said some of the Marine Discovery Center’s programs would be run out of the new eco-center and he wants to look into the possibility of having a shuttle bus run between the two facilities.

In the meantime, sea squirts and other folks interested in the local watery environment have a plethora of offerings to choose from at the Marine Discovery Center.

“Everyone’s like a kid here,” Ms. King said. “They all get to make discoveries.”

For more information on the Marine Discovery Center, call (386) 428-4828 or log onto marinediscoverycenter.org.