Virginia Living Museum
Capital Projects

Surgical Suite

The Virginia Living Museum is committed to providing our animals with excellent medical and surgical care that meets the standards of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), which is the accrediting body for facilities with live animals. Currently, we are equipped to do surgery on smaller animals. However, there is no wildlife facility in the Hampton Roads area adequately equipped to handle surgical care to wildlife such as Bobcat, Coyote and Red Wolves, which are part of the Museum's animal collection. The closest wildlife facility is nearly three hours away. Local veterinarians, while surgically skilled, have their practices equipped to handle domestic animals such as dogs and cats. Transporting animal patients that are already experiencing compromised health or are in an emergency situation decreases their chances for a good outcome and could even prove fatal. The medical community has supported the surgical suite project with equipment donated by area veterinarians and hospitals.

Your gift will help extend the life of an animal. We also plan to establish an endowment to pay for new technology and the on-going need for medical supplies. Please donate today!

Donate Now

Donate via our online donation form.

Use our printable donation form.

For more information call Rebecca Kleinhample 757-595-1900 ext. 286 or email the Development Office.

Holt Native Plant Conservatory

The Holt Native Plant Conservatory, named for Museum founders Mary Sherwood Holt and her late husband Quincy, will enable the Museum to expand its horticultural offerings including propagation of native plants and garden education programs.

Since the Museum’s creation, Mary Sherwood Holt has been a staunch supporter of the institution and its mission. All the while, she has also been a passionate advocate for horticulture and its importance to the Museum’s success. On May 6, 2011, the dedication of the Holt Native Plant Conservatory marks the realization of her dream that has spanned decades. The conservatory gives the Museum a showcase greenhouse where children can learn the importance of plants in our ecosystem, the public can enjoy, and the Horticulture Department can expand its efforts to conserve and promote native plants.

In fall 2010, the Museum began renovations to the old Songbird Aviary behind the Wason Education Center. The climate control systems were replaced, and the room received a facelift. New paneling was installed upstairs and downstairs with electrical and water service, and a fresh coat of paint was applied. Next, the process of converting the space from bird habitat to working greenhouse began. The concrete pools and retaining walls were removed. Then, the floor was leveled and covered with granite dust. The downstairs hallway was closed off and converted into a horticulture support area. Almost all of these renovations were completed “in house” by various Museum staff and volunteers. Finally, the shelves, seedling table, mist bench, potting table and plant benches were moved into place.

The Holt Native Plant Conservatory has more than 830 square feet of plant propagation, greenhouse and horticulture storage space. The Museum will be growing and quarantining larger plant material for use in animal exhibits. Hard-to-find ornamental native trees and shrubs will be propagated here. And, most exciting of all, we will begin to experiment with, and perfect, propagation methods for rare and endangered native plant species. Students will be able to use the propagation areas as part of their Museum classes. They will be educated on the importance of plants in our ecosystems and experience the joy that comes from growing them. Visitors will also have access to the conservatory through horticulture tours and special events.

The Conservatory is part of many planned garden improvements, including the opening of the expanded Children’s Garden in spring 2012. This expansion will be supported in part by a $50,000 challenge grant from the Mary Morton Parsons Foundation of Richmond. The Holt family and the Huntington and Green Springs garden clubs have committed  leadership support towards the match. Support has also come from the Hampton Roads Community Foundation. Members can help with the challenge by purchasing decorative pavers to adorn the new garden path.

Donate Now

Donate via our online donation form.

Use our printable donation form.

For more information call 757-595-1900 ext. 286 or email the Development Office.