Stony Brook Girl Scout Aims To Help Rehabilitate Injured Raptors

UNIONDALE, NY — Hailey Van Cott, a Suffolk County Girl Scout from Stony Brook, is working to improve the raptor facilities at Sweetbriar Nature Center and help rehabilitate injured birds of prey for her Gold Award project. She received some help from PSEG Long Island when the company awarded her a $200 donation towards the project, it announced in a press release.

Van Cott’s raptor rehabilitation project will educate the community about the importance of rehabilitating and releasing injured birds back into the wild. Her work will include repairing the prey enclosure inside the raptor enclosure at Sweetbriar Nature Center. The enclosure helps the raptors relearn how to hunt for food. In addition, educational pieces will be created to instruct younger Girl Scout troops about raptors and the importance of bird rehabilitation.

"I am humbled and very thankful to be recognized by PSEG Long Island for my Girl Scout Gold Award project at Sweetbriar Nature Center," said Van Cott, a student at Ward Melville High School. "The generous donation will enable me to improve upon the final aspects of rehabilitating the prey enclosure within the Flight Aviary. I have enjoyed working on this project to help ensure that the raptors can be rehabilitated and released into the wild."

PSEG Long Island said it works closely with the local community and municipalities to carefully relocate osprey and other raptor nests from electrical facilities to safe nesting locations.

"We want to help ensure these wonderful birds continue to return to the area year after year while, at the same time, protecting the reliability of the energy grid," said John O’Connell, PSEG Long Island’s vice president of transmission and distribution. "Hailey’s project aligns with our commitment to protecting the local raptor population."

The Girl Scout Gold Award is presented to seniors and ambassadors who tackle issues that are important to them and drive lasting change in the community. The Gold Award is for the elite few that strive to take "make the world a better place" to the next level. A Gold Award Girl Scout’s achievements prime her for the fast track when it comes to college admissions and make her an outstanding candidate for academic scholarships and other financial awards.

Sweetbriar Nature Center is at 62 Eckernkamp Dr., Smithtown.