BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo Director Gregg Dancho announced that something sweet is coming to area libraries: a ferociously fun way to win prizes at the Zoo while supporting literacy and reading. To celebrate the opening of a new Andean bear habitat along with the Zoo’s 100th birthday, the Zoo is sponsoring 500 sweet prizes designed as “Pots of Honey. Libraries in 16 towns throughout the area are participating in the giveaways.
Prizes to include:
- Five hundred “Honey Pot” prizes hidden in children’s books
- Yearlong family membership
- Free passes –both four packs and individual
- Free plush toys
- Zoo Adoption Kits
- Discounts at the Zoo gift shop
- Ice Cream Cones
- Carousel Rides
- Two Grand Prizes: One Free Child’s Birthday Party at the Zoo—and a ZOOMOBILE VISIT to a child’s classroom.
On Saturday, June 18, children and their families are invited to the libraries to search through books on bears, both fiction and non-fiction, in the children’s book departments. Libraries participating in the “Pot of Honey” search are in the following towns: Trumbull, Wilton, Milford, Weston, New Canaan, Monroe, Stratford, Easton, two branches in Fairfield, Danbury, Cheshire, Beacon Falls, Seymour, both branches in Shelton, Hamden, and all five branches in Bridgeport.
The Zoo’s official birthday celebration is scheduled for Saturday, June 25th. Also, later this summer, the Zoo’s newest habitat for Andean bears, (Tremarctos ornatus) will open. The spacious habitat features a landscaped outdoor yard with multiple opportunities for climbing and engaging in social behaviors.
“We’re unbearably excited to offer our ‘Wild About Reading’ prize search to area children,” Zoo Director Gregg Dancho said. “Educating children about wild animals and wild places is core to our mission and celebrates our 100thbirthday by encouraging a love for reading and wildlife.”
About Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo
Let your curiosity run wild! Connecticut’s only zoo, celebrating its 100thth year, features 350 animals representing primarily North and South American and Northern Asian species. Guests won’t want to miss our Amur tiger and leopards, maned wolves, and Mexican gray wolves. Other highlights include our spider monkey habitat, the prairie dog exhibit, and the Pampas Plain with giant anteaters and Chacoan peccaries. Guests can grab a bite from the Peacock Café and eat in the Picnic Grove. Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is a non-profit organization celebrating its Centennial year when the mission of helping fragile wildlife populations and ecosystems is more important than ever. Learn more about our Centennial here: https://www.beardsleyzoo.org/centennial.html
Tickets must be purchased on the Zoo’s website at beardsleyzoo.org. Inside animal buildings masks must be worn, as animals are susceptible to COVID-19. Everyone over the age of two, except for those with medical conditions that preclude wearing them, should have a mask available.