metro
Aquatic Gem from page 8
grant writer. She secured a National Trust
grant to hire an architect, who drew up
plans to repair the roof. Then, working with
the city, she secured $45,000 from the State
Historic Preservation Office. The Friends
matched it, and a new roof was installed,
giving the group the momentum it needed
to work toward reopening.
On Aug. 12, 2012, 108 years to the day of
the aquarium's opening, the public was once
again welcomed in. Since Sept. 15 of that
year, the aquarium has been open every
Saturday.
"The first fish on display were the
conservatory pond's koi that we placed
in the former large gar tank:' Boardman
said. They were recently transferred during
the biannual "koi wrangling" to the pond
outside the conservatory, where they will
spend the summer.
The koi were soon joined by fish pur-
chased from hobbyist breeders and distrib-
utors or donated or lent by aquarium fans.
"Currently, we have 118 species with
more than 1,000 individual fish:' Boardman
said. "Three of these species are extinct in
the wild, and 15 are endangered or threat-
ened. Eleven species in our collection are
not in any other public aquarium in the
United States:'
She said the aquarium's fish wish list
includes freshwater stingrays, seahorses and
an expansion of the native fish collection.
The aquarium once had an impressive
exhibit of stingrays, for which it won the
prestigious Edward H. Bean Award from
the Association of Zoos & Aquariums in
1975 and 1976. The award recognizes "a
truly significant captive propagation effort
that clearly enhances the conservation of
the species:'
Eleven species in the collection are not in any
other public aquarium in the United States.
While waiting to increase the fish collec-
tion, aquarium volunteers have created art
exhibits in the empty tanks. These include
jewelry made from recycled products by
volunteer Mike Essian; a display about the
Michigan Glass Project; and sculptures of
fish skeletons by Peter Hackett.
One of the tanks displays items from
Boardman's memorabilia collection of any-
thing Belle Isle-related. She began the col-
lection in 2005, as soon as she learned that
the aquarium would soon close. She finds
items — everything from porcelain dishes
to souvenir spoons and pennants — on
eBay and at garage sales.
Her oldest items are a crystal paper-
weight with a photo of "Central Park
Avenue — Belle Isle Park" from 1901 and a
hand-carved mother-of-pearl fish fastened
to a shell inscribed "Belle Isle Park" from
1904.
She has many old postcards dating from
1901, some picturing long-lost structures
from the island and many describing
delightful adventures at the park.
Boardman received the 2012 Gov. John
B. Swainson Award from the Michigan
Historical Commission for her role in pre-
serving, restoring and protecting the Belle
Isle Aquarium.
On - site Education
Jeff Ram, a professor of physiology at
Wayne State University's medical school, is
the aquarium's director for science educa-
tion and chair of the science and education
advisory board. His group coordinates
Science Saturday talks at the aquarium on
the first Saturday of every month, and will
add Sunday programs
now that the aquarium
will be open Sunday as
well.
The aquarium regu-
larly hosts school groups,
using all-volunteer staff.
Ram has applied
for
a National Science
Jeff Ram
Foundation grant so
the aquarium can hire
full-time staff to handle
programs for K-12 students.
Ram, a member of Oak Park
Congregation T'Chiyah who lives in
Huntington Woods, has brought several
grant-funded research and education
projects to the aquarium, including exhib-
its about invasive species such as the sea
lamprey and Asian carp, and has set up a
research lab in the aquarium's basement.
Starting in June, the aquarium will host
a WSU biology course.
One of Ram's vendors is an Orthodox
Jew who made a generous donation of sup-
plies to celebrate the building's opening on
Sundays.
The aquarium has been on the itiner-
ary for tours by Jewish religious school
students since 2009, said Wendy Rose Bice,
director of the Jewish Historical Society of
Michigan (JHSM).
A group of volunteers — Judy Cantor,
Ellen Cole, Gerald Cook, Ruthe Goldstein,
Margery Jablin, Adele Staller and Carol
Weisfeld — planned the program, aimed at
middle-school students,
to blend nostalgia with
a strong upbeat, positive
message of the impor-
tance of the contribu-
tions of Detroit's Jewish
leaders and neighbor-
hoods, Bice said.
J
"Thanks to many
Wendy Rose
donors and grants,
Bice
we've been able to pro-
vide these tours at no charge for students
attending religious schools," she said. "Each
year, up to a dozen schools participate, and
close to 500 children are exposed to these
important values, lessons and landmarks:'
In 2012, the JHSM, in collaboration
with the Metro Detroit Board of Jewish
Educators, added new venues to the tour
and incorporated actors to portray historic
Jewish characters like Hank Greenberg.
Earlier this year, the JHSM received fund-
ing from the Hermelin-Davidson Fund
of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit to create and implement in-class,
pre-tour lessons on Detroit Jewish history.
Boardman often serves as the guide for
the religious school tours.
"It is so much fun to share with the
students that their heritage includes the
creator of the aquarium, David Heineman,
and the architect, Albert Kahn:' she said,
"and that Jewish people are still involved
with the aquarium:'
❑
To donate or volunteer, visit the Belle
Isle Conservancy website at www.
belleisleconservancy.org .
Jennifer Boardman views various
forms of Trout Cichlid.
Jennifer Boardman in front of the Belle Isle Aquarium
10 May 29 • 2014