The Bronx Zoo Celebrates 125 Years of Community Impact
The Bronx Zoo, a beloved NYC gem for residents, is celebrating its 125th birthday this year. The zoo kicked off this incredible celebration with a stunning ceremony featuring special performances by the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers and dancers from the Harambee Dance Company alongside drummers. There was an outpouring of community love and support at the ceremony, and we were lucky enough to get a sneak peek of an exciting new exhibit, Animal Chronicles, which officially opened its doors to the public April 20th.
Celebrating 125 Years
Since its establishment in 1899, the Bronx Zoo has been a popular destination for families in the city and surrounding areas and a symbol of our community. It has become a New York City cultural icon, drawing visitors from all over. Yet, for us New Yorkers, even in Westchester, the Bronx Zoo is more than just a zoo. It’s where we’ve all created memories with classmates on school trips and with our families, friends, and community members. We feel at home at the Bronx Zoo, and there’s a proud intention behind that, as emphasized by zoo director Jim Breheny.
Jim Breheny, a Bronx native, proudly shared that he has been working at the Bronx Zoo since he was 14, and now, about 50 years later, he’s the director. His journey is a testament to the opportunities and growth that the Bronx Zoo can offer. He shared this story with a room filled with people but spoke directly to a few special guests in the front rows, a group of 5th-grade students from PS 205 who were invited to take part in the celebration. He told them they could be in his position one day and become part of the Bronx Zoo community.
While the Bronx Zoo has done incredible work in wildlife conservation, as an organization, it takes pride in continuing to be an impactful space for the Bronx community. It’s the city’s largest employer of youth in the Bronx and the largest STEM education provider in New York City. It offers paid internships and many opportunities for the community’s youth to grow.
Special guests, Lieutenant Governor of New York Antonio Delgado, City Council Member Rafael Salamanca, Jr., the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Laurie Cumbo, and Borough President Vanessa Gibson were present. They expressed their community support and gratitude for the organization and shared fond memories of their time at the zoo and how it’s a staple for their families and themselves.
Borough President Vanessa Gibson specifically spoke to the significance of the Bronx Zoo and other important cultural institutions in the Bronx that positively affect our community, stating, “We need to continue to invest in all of our cultural institutions, just like the Bronx Zoo.” She finished with a special proclamation, officially making April 18th Bronx Zoo Day.
The exciting proclamation called for cake and photos, and the ceremony closed out with a special gift from the students of PS 205: a poster made to honor the Bronx Zoo’s 125th anniversary. The students joined in by cutting the cake and closing the ceremony, making for a perfect celebration that reflected all that the Bronx Zoo has to offer.
Animal Chronicles
The excitement continued into the park grounds as guests got to take a walk through the new exhibit, ‘Animal Chronicles.’ This new immersive exhibit is a quarter-mile ADA-accessible walk through 13 scenes of eco-friendly sculptures that highlight the zoo’s impact on its wildlife, how it’s helped save endangered species, how it created art that can connect any visitor to nature, and the significance of continuous efforts to protect wildlife around the world.
Families will marvel at the incredible sculptures made from Spanish moss, palm fiber, bamboo, riverstone, hemp, and more. They’ll also get the chance to learn about the wildlife that inspired these sculptures with digital storybooks accessible through QR Codes found throughout the trail.
Families can learn about some incredible Bronx Zoo stories, like ‘The Recovery of a River,’ about how the Bronx community banded together to clean up The Bronx River. In doing so, they welcomed back animals that had been missed for years, like beavers. Or ‘Over a Century of Saving Bison,’ which is about how the Bronx Zoo began working to help save Bison.
‘Animal Chronicles’ is guaranteed to be a family favorite this season and can’t be missed. The exhibit is now open to the public.
