For Ohio’s bird enthusiasts, May is prime time, as the arrival of northbound migrants adds color and song to the landscape. No group of birds exemplifies migration season more than the wood warblers. That family of birds, the Parulidae, includes…
Brian Code
Brian retired five years ago from an engineering career in sensor manufacturing, serving the environmental, medical device and aerospace/satellite industries. During retirement, he has been motivated to keep learning, make new social connections, and to do meaningful work helping people…
May the Fourth Be With You!
Enjoy an evening in Forest Field Park on Saturday, May 4, watching the animated 2008 movie “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” — perfect for any age Star Wars fan. We will start at 7 p.m. with interactive games and crafts…
Cracking the Shell Game
All around us, birds are back in the business of producing the next generation, their eggs hidden away in nest cups and tree holes. Bird eggs are marvels of biological engineering. All of the materials needed to build a new…
Two Eclipse Viewing Parties
All of Centerville-Washington Park District (CWPD) is inside the path of totality during the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. We are hosting two viewing parties! Family Fun Event Forest Field Park, 2100 E Centerville Station Rd. 1:30 – 3:30…
Beauty and the Bees
Spring beauties, Claytonia virginica, are among the earliest blooming of our so-called “spring ephemerals,” the woodland wildflowers that bloom in succession between March and May. Spring beauties survive the winter as a mini-potato-like tuberous root that provides the plant with…
2023 Annual Report
The Centerville-Washington Park District 2023 Annual Report is now available. Discover all of the exciting things that happened last year in your community’s BIG backyard! If you have any questions, please contact us at 937-433-5155 or mail@cwpd.org. We’re looking forward…
Groundhog Day and Skunk Cabbage: Coupled by Uncoupling
It’s February, often Dayton’s coldest month. Groundhogs, aka woodchucks, which amuse us with their antics during the warmer seasons, have long since hidden away in their underground hibernation retreats. At the same time, the broad green leaves of skunk cabbages,…
Meena Sonnycalb
Meena started volunteering as a freshman going into her sophomore year at Centerville High School. Now, in her junior year, she has continued volunteering with the parks. She has always spent a lot of her time outdoors. Whether that was…
Birds of Winter: Turning up the Fire of Life
Through the cold months of winter, the animals that remain active in our woods, meadows, and neighborhoods are those with high rates of metabolism that sustain warm body temperatures—the endothermic (“warm-blooded”) birds and mammals. While some small mammals, like mice…