The Kinzua Area Discovery Center has launched an opportunity for individual community donors to support the new endeavor.

The Founding 50 Bedrock campaign is a chance for those who want to see the educational facility become a reality to get in on the ground floor. It’s also a good test for the center’s future financial viability. The center is planned as an immersive indoor adventure that includes an enchanted forest, winding river and animals. As we’ve said before, the center would be an outstanding addition to Warren – but it comes with a $10 million price tag that will take a while to raise.

The center has received community support thus far. But this campaign is something a little different. We’re sure that foundations and philanthropic groups will be paying attention to the Founding 50 Bedrock campaign as a way of gauging community support for the discovery center. Raising $250,000 is a sign the general public is as supportive of the Kinzua Area Discovery Center as area foundations and the center’s board have been and would send a strong signal that the center will receive the kind of support that will keep it open and thriving for years to come.

There’s one more reason we hope the campaign is successful. The $250,000, according to center officials, will be used for exhibit design and initial construction. Giving the public a better idea of exactly what the exhibits will be when the center is open will be an important part of future fundraising and, hopefully, be a way to drive even more of the center’s future fundraising.

It may not seem like it, but the Founding 50 Bedrock campaign is a key moment for the Kinzua Area Discovery Center.