Alex and Ani Farmyard opens at Roger Williams Park Zoo

Posted 7/30/14

Learning by doing has long been recognized as one of the best education tools, and now children and the young at heart can experience what it’s like to be a farmer in the 21st century at the newly …

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Alex and Ani Farmyard opens at Roger Williams Park Zoo

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Learning by doing has long been recognized as one of the best education tools, and now children and the young at heart can experience what it’s like to be a farmer in the 21st century at the newly opened Alex and Ani Farmyard at Roger Williams Park Zoo.

Through Alex and Ani’s Charity by Design division, the company made a $400,000 donation pledge to Roger Williams Park Zoo/Rhode Island Zoological Society, which provided the cornerstone for funding needed to create the new 26,000-square-foot exhibit.

Featuring hands-on activities, including the “milking station” sponsored by Monroe Dairy and the “egg collection station” sponsored by Little Rhody Farms, children can also interact with farm animals in a new contact yard. The project, which also received additional funding from the Champlin Foundations, includes an animal collection featuring domestic farm animals like species of goats, hogs, sheep, as well as wildlife that make farmland their home. Barn owls, for example, play an important role in controlling rodent populations. Visitors can also find alpaca in the new exhibit and longtime favorite Willy the miniature donkey will be back in the Alex and Ani Farmyard as well.

The $400,000 cornerstone gift, to be provided over two years, from Alex and Ani’s Charity by Design further expands the lifestyle brand’s commitment to Roger Williams Park Zoo/Rhode Island Zoological Society. The partnership through design launched with the Monkey Bangle, which was locally unveiled at Zoobilee in June 2013. This was followed with the unveiling of the Ode to the Owl Bangle at the 2014 event to kick off a second year of fundraising partnership.

To date, the bangle partnership has raised over $142,000 that has been dedicated to the Farmyard and its informal environmental education programs to provide a resource for fun and learning for the zoo’s 600,000 annual visitors.

Zoo Executive Director Jeremy Goodman, DVM, said, “Providing an experience for our visitors that instills in them a sense of wonder and caring for the natural world is one of our top priorities. We are thrilled that Alex and Ani and its Charity by Design division find us a strong match for their company’s values. They very quickly have become exceptional partners in our mission.”

A bit later in the season, additional features will be completed, including a stage for animal encounters and other types of presentations, silver fox rabbit and chicken enclosures plus a farm stand where kids can pretend to harvest, weigh and sell produce. The interpretive elements in the Farmyard underscore the hard work that farms do every day and the importance of buying local to support farms in our communities.

“Our mission is to support non-profit organizations committed to the environment, community and wellness so that the positive energy created by their good works will foster a better living community for all of us,” said Nicki Maher, vice president of Alex and Ani’s Charity by Design. “Roger Williams Park Zoo is a natural fit with our mission given its tremendous impact in educating youth from across Southern New England on how we can work and live in an eco-conscious environment. The Alex and Ani team is proud to support Roger Williams Park Zoo’s mission and we will continue to find ways to improve our environment through our Charity by Design partnerships worldwide.”

The previous farmyard exhibit, called the “Full Circle Farmyard,” had become outdated, with some structures significantly deteriorated. A complete overhaul was needed to bring it up to the standards of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

Goodman, who took on leadership of the Zoo in July of 2013, expects to have a 15-year master plan completed by the end of 2014, at which point specific plans for the zoo will be available.

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