Children release monarch butterflies at Champlain Centre garden
Aug. 9—PLATTSBURGH — Butterflies are a symbol of change, of hope.
At Champlain Centre Tuesday afternoon, they symbolized just that when a group of kids from the Ted K Center in Plattsburgh released several monarch butterflies, which they helped grow, into the mall's pollinator garden full of milkweed, black-eyed Susans and other natives plants that pollinators like bees and butterflies are attracted to.
Tobacco Free Clinton, Franklin, Essex and the Ted K Center partnered with Champlain Centre to help make the project come to fruition.
SMOKE-FREE ANNIVERSARY
The children's monarch release was in commemoration of Champlain Centre's 10-year anniversary of becoming a smoke-free property.
The garden was created to symbolize the positive change that occurs when someone quits smoking.
"Providing a healthy environment for our customers and merchants is our goal," Lisa Getty, General Manager of Champlain Centre, said in a news release.
"Offering a smoke-free atmosphere goes a long way in positively impacting the well-being of the community."
Over the course of a week, the children watched the life cycle of the monarch in real time: from caterpillar to butterfly.
'THEY WERE SO CUTE'
Kindergartener Arrietty Robear, one of the children who helped release the monarchs, is a "bugologist" who loves everything about insects; her favorites are caterpillars and, of course, butterflies.
"Everyday I was waiting for them to go outside of their cocoons," Robear said.
"They were so cute; I just wanted to hold one."
When Robear did get to hold a monarch at the release, it wasn't what she expected.
"It felt a little weird; it felt like I was holding a giant spider," she said.
In the time she spent watching them grow, Robear gave names to a couple of her favorites
"There was 'Ringy,' (and) 'Silly Goose,' because he was moving his tongue everywhere, like circles and circles," she said.
"Monarch butterflies are poisonous — did you know that? That's weird. I think they're just poisonous color bugs."
Nova Harden, a fourth-grader who also helped with the release, said it was sad to see them go.
"Because they're fun," she said.
On why she likes them so much, Harden mentioned the monarchs' distinct look.
"They're pretty and I like their colors because they all have different colors, not all of them but some of them have different colors," she said.
SOMETHING FUN
Ted K Center teacher aide Hillary Chrestler said they like providing these unique experiences to the children.
"It breaks up their summer. Fridays are usually their field trip day and then (other days) we do activities like this," Chrestler said.
"They came to us as caterpillars and we watched them in little cups...take the covers off and we put them in the little nets, and we got to watch them move around in the chrysalis and then they colored pictures today of the life cycles of the butterflies. Then they saw them as they were coming out of their cocoons this morning.
"It's pretty quick from the time we have them as caterpillars to butterflies."
Another release will likely come soon as there are still a few unhatched cocoons, Chrestler said.
"We have one big net at the center that only has one butterfly in it and then two more in the other one," she said.
"With COVID, we didn't get to do as many adventures and things, so it's nice to get back and do stuff that's fun."
Email: cnewton@pressrepublican.com
Twitter: CarlySNewton
