Water… in the desert? What’s that “strip of green”? Adjoining the Lake Las Vegas Community to the west is a 2,900-acre managed wild area known as Clark County Wetlands Park. With four unique habitats straddling nearly eight miles of the Las Vegas Wash and a 45,000-square foot, LEED Gold-certified, state-of-the-art Nature Center on its west end, the Park is one of Southern Nevada’s hidden gems.

Come join members and guests and get an “insider’s peek” at Wetlands Park from special guest speaker Chris Leavitt, who’s been associated with the Park from its earliest days. In 1995 she was appointed to serve on the Park Master Plan Committee, charged with safeguarding the natural balance of this magical place. She went on to develop and manage the Park’s volunteer and educational programs, retiring from the position in 2014.

Ms. Leavitt’s forty-year career includes positions at the Barrick Museum of Natural History (UNLV), Clark County Museum, and Clark County Wetlands Park. She was involved with place-based education and museum collection management (including live animal exhibits), exhibit research and design (including the exhibits at the Wetlands Park Nature Center); and volunteer management (including establishing and managing the Wetlands Park Volunteer Program). She currently serves as President of Wetlands Park Friends, the all-volunteer, nonprofit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to help preserve and support the Park.

As a child in elementary school, Ms. Leavitt’s teachers often referred to her as “the kid with something in her pockets,” usually something alive! She has a lifelong passion for all kinds of animals. She has kept many different pets, including dogs, cats, horses, turtles, lizards, toads, a hamster, a tarantula, and even a praying mantis. Ms. Leavitt’s appreciation of  wild natural areas has made County Wetlands Park the place of a lifetime for her, personally and professionally. She holds both a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology with a minor in Earth Science and a master’s degree in Anthropology with thesis in Museum Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.