SHERBURNE – This weekend the Rogers Environmental Education Center will celebrate the 10th annual Earth Fest, which has only been made possible by volunteers.

The annual event is one of a handful of others the center is attempting to hold despite the state’s decision Dec. 31 to close the site’s visitor center and cut funding for five education staff positions.

In April the Friends of Rogers (FOR), a not-for-profit group affiliated center, reached an agreement with the Department of Environmental Conservation to operate Rogers and continue to offer limited public activities and programs.

Earth Fest will take place from noon to 4 p.m. this Saturday and it is the first event to be organized by FOR, who relies heavily on volunteers.

FOR said “participants will learn about sustainability and how to protect the earth’s precious resources through exhibits on alternative energy, climate change, green building design and green living. There will be hands-on activities, canoe and kayak try-outs, and nature crafts for children. Visitors can take home a tree or shrub for their yard and learn more about local environmental organizations.”

The free event will feature more than 20 exhibitors and will offer a host of activities including Kayak and Canoe Tryouts, Artists demonstrations, children’s games, birdhouse and bath building and more. A meet and greet presentation and update from the FOR board will be held a noon.

On Thursday 16 volunteers joined the Earth Fest coordinator Laura Carey to set up for Saturday’s event. Carey worked at the center for 31 years as the Teacher Workshop and the State Project WILD Coordinator. She explained her duties involved frequently traveling to schools to meet with teachers and students in helping them to create environmental educational programs. She was laid off in Dec. and was hired by FOR to coordinator Earth Fest.

“There used to be six full time people here now there are none. People have heard the center is still open but what they might not understand is that’s not really true. It’s not open, it’s having an event,” said Carey.

The Center remains open to the public, from dawn to dusk and the state continues to maintain the buildings, plow snow and provide security but all of the site’s building’s are closed. The Visitor Center and other facilities will be open for the scheduled events however, including Earth Fest.