Amid the sprawl of Annandale, a bit of nature thrives

Hidden Oaks celebrates 40 years of education

As Annandale continued to become increasingly urban over the past four decades, a small building on the edge of a wooded oasis has helped preserve a natural wildlife habitat and taught multiple generations the importance of protecting the environment.

Hidden Oaks Nature Center, just inside the Capital Beltway, has become an integral part of the surrounding community as well as a destination for many other county residents, according to many people who attended a celebration of the center's 40th anniversary on Oct. 17.

"We have people who started coming here as children, and now they're bringing their own children," said Suzanne Holland, assistant manager of Hidden Oaks.

It almost didn't survive to see its 40th birthday. Fairfax County's first nature center was going to be closed because of county budget cuts in 2003, but a group of residents rallied to keep it open.

"The community rose up as one and said, 'How dare you,' " said Supervisor Penelope A. Gross (D-Mason), recalling the Board of Supervisors budget hearings that year. The center had operated under the radar of county decision makers until then and seemed ripe for cuts until the community acted, she said.

Gross persuaded her colleagues to restore $175,000 to fund Hidden Oaks and another nature center in Great Falls in late 2003 when surplus money became available.

With the support of the Friends of Hidden Oaks Nature Center, which formed as a result of the 2003 effort, the center draws more than 30,000 visitors a year to enjoy its hands-on exhibits, educational programs and the Nature Playce wooded play area, according to the Fairfax County Park Authority.

"Hidden Oaks is truly changing people's lives for the better on a daily basis," said Scott Birdwell, president of the Friends group.

The exhibits and educational programs at the center are designed to teach children about the plants and animals that live in the surrounding 52-acre Annandale Community Park, as well as educating people about how to be good stewards of the environment.

Although adults benefit from the programs, "it's about the kids," said Birdwell, who lives near the center and discovered its value after his 7-year-old daughter was born.

"There's a connection [with nature] that kids get when they're young," Birdwell said. He thinks nurturing that curiosity leads children to be more interested in science.

Adults who love the center say the youngest generation needs to be able to experience nature and understand how to preserve it, alleviating what some call "nature deficit disorder."

"It's important to get children involved at a very young age," said Libby Novak, who lives in the neighborhood next to the park and brings her grandchildren to the nature center." We need stewards for our environment."