- Woldumar Nature Center in Delta Township receives a $23,000 grant to replace the roof of the historic Moon Cabin, originally built in 1860.
- The cabin, saved from demolition in 1980, continues to serve as an educational tool for teaching 19th-century life and its relationship with nature.
- Watch the video above to see how Woldumar nature center plans to use the cabin.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
Sitting quietly in a corner at the Woldumar Nature Center, the Moon Cabin here in Delta Township carries decades of history.
But it wasn’t always on this property.
After surviving more than 100 Michigan winters and summers, it was slated for destruction in 1980 due to new developments on Canal Road.
Kevin Wernet, the executive director of the Woldumar Nature Association, says that’s when their story starts.
"The leadership here at that time decided, we can’t let this thing go, and decided to move it here to the property," said Wernet.
Saving the historic building from demolition and ensuring its preservation for future generations.
But now it’s facing another challenge: Mother Nature.
“This roof has been on for years and years and years, it hasn’t failed us yet, but it’s gotten to the point where if we want to preserve this structure it’s gonna need that new roof,” Wernet said.
A replacement of the cedar shake roof is something that the nature center couldn’t afford.
In a fortunate turn of events, the nature center was recently awarded just over $23,000 from the State of Michigan Arts and Culture Council (MACC), saving the cabin yet again.
For Eaton County neighbor Christen Koets, the preservation of this cabin brings back childhood memories.
“All the kids generation after generation have been excited to come here, my brother and I came here when we were little, and it's fun to watch them participate in the same things that we did,” said Koets.
The nature center says it’s a key component of their lessons about nature.
“This cabin kinda gives us a framework for going back to earlier days, the late 1800s and kinda looking at how people lived back in those days and how their lives impacted nature and were impacted by nature,” said Wernet.
And for neighbors like Koets, having this cabin stay functional helps her kids learn in memorable ways.
“As a homeschool parent, having access to real-life examples like this really drives those lessons home,” Koets said.
Officials tell me the replacement of the roof will take place in the spring, and additional funds will be used to train staff and to place more historically accurate items in the cabin.
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