living cover
WHERE THE
Wild Things
ARE
TYLER STEWART
Whether in the Oldman
River Valley, or an
asphalt parking lot of
the suburbs, Mother
Earth is always under
our feet. So why then,
do we seek to find
wild creatures far
away, when they’re
right here with us?
You can visit the resident muskrat
at the Elizabeth Hall Wetlands.
Having a large river valley running through the centre of the
city helps to provide every resident with convenient access to
a natural space.
T H E VA S T U N TA M E D W I L D E R N E S S AWA I T S , or at least that’s
what they tell us. It’s easy to think that nature exists in a tidy little area
marked by borders and boundaries, staying on its side of the line, while we
go about our daily lives within city limits.
This is, in fact, the furthest thing from the truth. Nature surrounds us
everywhere we go and in everything we do. “We need nature in our lives;
it’s a part of us,” says Coreen Putman, Manager of the Helen Schuler Nature
Centre. “An urban nature centre like the Helen Schuler Nature Centre is
a place where people and nature are thriving together – where we are
connected with nature, and it’s part of the human community as well.”
Located in the Lethbridge river valley, the Helen Schuler Nature Centre
connects people to the natural environment around them. First opened
in 1982, the centre’s namesake was a driving force in its creation, though
sadly, Helen Schuler passed away before she could see its completion. Along
with Elizabeth Hall, these two women were leading the charge to develop
environmental education programs and preservation strategies for the
Oldman River Valley during the 1970s and 1980s.
“They were part of the
naturalist group that would take
groups of people into the river
valley and do programs to teach
about the wildlife and plants in
the area,” Coreen explains. “They
really advocated for a nature
centre to be built that would
better facilitate these learning
opportunities.”
LETHBRIDGELIVING.COM
JUL-AUG 2017
27