The newly expanded and renovated Daggerwing Nature Center in nearby South County Regional Park has lots of upcoming events for your children. Here’s the lineup from now until Thanksgiving:

ANIMAL ENCOUNTER: ALLIGATORS
Saturday, October 25 at 2:00 pm
Families, $3 per person
Reservations Required
What’s the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? Come found out and get a chance to meet an alligator up close!

CHILDREN’S NATURE SERIES: BATS
Tuesday, October 28 at 2:30 pm
Ages 3-6, $4 per child
Reservations Required
Parents, bring your little ones to experience exciting nature topics! Programs may include activities such as: stories, puppets, games, role play, nature walks, and crafts.

HALLOWEEN “BOO”ARDWALK
Friday, October 31 anytime between 7:00 – 9:00pm
All Ages/Families, FREE
Reservation NOT Required
After trick-or-treating, bring your costumed kids and take a walk on the family-friendly “Boo”ardwalk through a real swamp! Take part in fun Halloween activities and crafts while learning about some spooky creatures of the night! Bring a flashlight to see what creatures you can find in the swamp! Bug spray is recommended.

STORY TIME
Sunday, November 2 at 2:00pm
Children, $2 per child
Reservations NOT Required
Join us as we go on adventures through stories, both fiction and non-fiction, about animals and nature!

ANIMAL ENCOUNTER: CAMOUFLAGE
Saturday, November 8 at 2:00 pm
Families, $3 per person
Reservations Required
Why are colors and patterns on animals important? Come find out and meet some hard to find animals!

NIGHT HIKE
Friday, November 14 at 6:00 pm
Families, $3 per person
Reservations Required
What comes out at night? Join us for a walk through our wetlands and see some special adaptations of nocturnal animals. Bring bug spray and a flashlight.

CHILDREN’S NATURE SERIES: RECYCLING
Tuesday, November 18 at 2:30 pm
Ages 3-4, $4 per child
Reservations Required
Parents, Bring your little ones to experience exciting nature topics! Programs may include activities such as: stories, puppets, games, role play, nature walks, and crafts.

ORIGAMI
Friday, November 21 at 3:00 pm
Children 7+, FREE
Reservations NOT Required
Join volunteers Jerry and Marilyn Lambert as they teach the ancient art of paper-folding.

ANIMAL ENCOUNTER: OWLS
Saturday, November 22 at 2:00 pm
Families, $3 per person
Reservations Required
Whoooo’s curious about owls? Come learn about these amazing and important birds and get a chance to meet an owl!

CHILDREN’S NATURE SERIES: RECYCLING
Tuesday, November 25 at 2:30 pm
Ages 5-6, $4 per child
Reservations Required
Parents, Bring your little ones to experience exciting nature topics! Programs may include activities such as: stories, puppets, games, role play, nature walks, and crafts.

Please note that most of these programs are by reservation only, which you can make by calling 629-8760. Most programs also charge a modest fee, payable at the door by cash or check only. All participants are required to sign a Program Participation Form for each program you attend.

The Daggerwing Nature Center is located close to the Coconut Cove Waterpark.

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Captain Matt Eisenberg, who commands the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office in West Boca, told the audience at the West Boca Community Council’s October meeting that residential burglaries in West Boca have shot up 50% since mid-summer.

Most such crimes were committed during the day, and many involved breaking and entering. The two favorite points of entry were sliding glass doors and rear windows.

In a number of cases, thieves in an unmarked white van stole the aluminum panel type of hurricane shutters.

He also said that car burglaries had jumped 50% last summer, but the rate has fallen considerably since then. The great majority of such burglaries involve unlocked cars, as we have reported numerous times on FRONT PAGE.

The best protection against car burglaries is:

1. Lock your car doors at all times – even in your own driveway.

2. If you have any valuables in your car, keep them out of sight.

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Would you like to see a skateboarding facility in West Boca that provides a safe and supervised environment where young people could go to skateboard?

The Board of Directors of the West Boca Community Council recently passed a resolution by unanimous vote to encourage the establishment of just such a facility.

Skateboarding has become an increasingly popular sport among young people all across the country. The growing number of skateboard enthusiasts in West Boca skate in all the wrong places, such as HOA recreational facilities, on residential sidewalks and streets, and in the parking lots of commercial complexes. Currently, they have no place else to engage in this activity, which can be both a nuisance to others and a danger to themselves.

For those who think that a skateboard facility is too problematic because of liability issues, there are plenty of examples to go to school on. There are now thousands of such facilities all across the country – many operated by local governments, some by the private sector.

There are numerous skateboard facilities in our own area – in Coral Springs, West Palm Beach, Jupiter, West Boynton, and even within the city limits of Boca Raton. The one in West Boynton is the first such facility opened by the Palm Beach County Parks & Recreation Department. It’s located in an area loaded with senior communities and where the teen and pre-teen population is a fraction of West Boca’s.

The West Boca Community Council is encouraging the county to build a skateboard park in cavernous South County Regional Park, or perhaps in the much smaller Loggers Run Park on Palmetto.

Whether the county builds one or the private sector does, the time has come for a skateboard park to be built in West Boca.

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The Boca Raton Dog Club is sponsoring NUTTS FOR MUTTS, an all-day festival for dogs on Saturday, November 1 at the new Amphitheater in South County Regional Park.

The event will kick off at 10 am with an animal blessing from Father Frank and Rabbi Frank, followed by fun contests for adults, young people and their dogs. PBSO’s K9 tracking unit will put on a demonstration, as will the obedience and agility clubs. There will be presentations on CPR and critical care from top professionals as well as from breeding clubs, the American Kennel Club, the American Red Cross and the fire department.

The Boca Raton Dog Club, a non-profit organization, will conduct raffles for the best products, services and gift certificates generously donated by local and national merchants.

There will be lots of great vendors at the event, including purveyors of food and beverages.

NUTTS FOR MUTTS will raise funds to provide every rescue vehicle in Palm Beach County with smoke inhalation equipment for animals.

Anyone interested in volunteering should call the Boca Raton Dog Club at 394-4404.

Vendors wanting to book space at the event should also call 394-4404.

It is recommended that you bring a blanket or lawn chair.

Admission to NUTTS FOR MUTTS is free. A donation of $5 for parking will be collected to help pay for the smoke inhalation masks.

Where: the Amphitheater at South County Regional Park

When: Saturday, November 1

Time: 9 am to 4 pm

Directions: west on Glades 2.5 miles from 441, turn right into park and follow signs

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Many teenagers are dealing with outsized challenges such as drug and alcohol addiction, depression, academic pressures, teen pregnancy and relationship issues. All teenagers travel through periods of isolation as they struggle to cope, but for some the benefit derived from counseling can be crucial to a healthy outcome.

Mark Cherny, LCSW supervisor of outreach and community services for the Ruth Rales Jewish Family Service of South Florida (RRJFS), offers free e-mail counseling at www.teentalk4u.org as well as counseling via phone at (561) 852-3333 or (800) 393-5397 Monday through Thursday, 8:30 am to 8:30 pm, and Fridays until 4:30 p.m.

The teen talk e-mail counseling is a confidential service that is offered to all teenagers regardless of race, religion, creed, ethnic background, or sexual orientation. Cherny also welcomes calls from concerned parents dealing with teenage issues.

Cherny may be a familiar name for children who have attended his lively, interactive skits at south Palm Beach County middle and high schools. Cherny has reached out to 7,500 students annually during the past 10 years using his unique skit format to address issues of addiction, substance abuse and other significant problems.

The Ruth Rales Jewish Family Service of South Florida has been offering various programs to benefit the Boca community for over 27 years from their west Boca location at 21300 Ruth & Baron Coleman Boulevard, as well as the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Center located at 14620 South Military Trail in Delray Beach. The organization boasts of over 200 volunteers, which include teenagers. Trained teens participate in the Teen Connect program weekly by calling homebound elderly people. Twice a year the teenagers and their elderly counterparts have an opportunity to meet face-to-face for a richly rewarding inter-generational experience during a RRJFS sponsored luncheon.

A Federal Grant titled “Fighting The Pain of Youth Depression” has recently been awarded to RRJFS to work with teenagers in local middle and high schools. Cherny says, “An important aspect of this work will be to train teachers to spot symptoms of depression and identify suffering students”. Teenagers often do not admit to feeling depressed, and it is the adults in their lives who can make all the difference in getting the needed help.

For additional information on services provided by RRJFS visit www.ruthralesjfs.org

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