Montgomery County, TN – On Tuesday afternoon, June 4th, 2019, around 70 people came out to celebrate the groundbreaking for the Wade Bourne Nature Center at Montgomery County’s Rotary Park. Expected to open summer 2020, the nature center is named in honor of Wade Bourne because of his long-time passion and commitment to conservation and the outdoors.
Montgomery County Mayor Jim Durrett, Director of Parks Jerry Allbert, Architect Lane Lyle and Becky Bourne, widow of Wade Bourne, spoke to the crowd prior to the ceremonial groundbreaking.
“I recall several years ago talking to Jerry Albert about the master plan for Rotary Park. There was a small feature, towards the entrance, that was going to be a nature center but was more office space than nature center,” said Mayor Durrett.
“After Wade’s passing, I reached out to Lane, a close friend of Wade’s, about doing something special with the nature center in his honor. Today is mixed with a lot of emotions for Becky and her family. It’s sad because Wade is not with us but joyful because his legacy will live on in this wonderful facility for generations to enjoy,” Mayor Durrett stated.
A consistent theme of gratitude for the project to the Montgomery County Engineering and Parks and Recreation Departments, the design team of Frank Lott with BLF Marketing and former Austin Peay State University Biology Professor Laurina Lyle, the APSU Center of Excellence for Field Biology, the Bourne Family, and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s Recreation Education Services Division that is partially funding the center through a local parks and recreation fund grant of $500,000, rang through in the speaker’s comments.
“Wade was aware of the detriments that result to both our youth and the environment, sometimes referred to as ‘nature deficit disorder.’ He vowed that exposure to nature with today’s youth would become his mission in his retirement and that he would use his time and talents to this end,” said Lyle.
“I’m thankful to work for an organization that does not just think about projects five years out, but 15 years into the future. This is going to be a place of learning for visitors and Montgomery County residents,” said Allbert.
Becky Bourne thanked Mayor Durrett for his vision on the project and overall vision for Montgomery County. She said she hoped the nature center would be a respite of calm and peace from the chaos of life.
She read, “In all my travels, I never had found a place quite so beautiful or a group of people so friendly as that of Tennessee. And I think many people who live there fail to see in the day to day coexistence, the splendor of their surroundings. May they be reawakened and appreciated.”
Representatives from Ducks Unlimited were also there to present Mrs. Bourne with a special gift to commemorate the contributions of Wade Bourne.
To read more about the life and contributions of Bourne visit www.ducks.org/ducks-unlimited-remembers-wade-bourne
