ORANGE BEACH – For the first time in its history the Sea, Sand and Stars Museum at the Orange Beach Elementary School will be open to the public for a weeklong of exhibits and speakers.

The week is made possible by a $25,000 grant from the Coastal Baldwin Educational Enrichment Foundation. BP initially gave the money to CBEE who in turn made the donation to the museum.

“Under current laws and guidelines, a business, individual or other entity is unable to earmark a donation to public school systems in Alabama,” Coastal Baldwin Educational Enrichment Foundation, Inc. Chairman Yolanda Devine Johnson said “However, through educational foundations like CBEE, benefactors are able to donate the money to us, and we are then able to funnel it to the organizations or projects the donor desires.”

An added bonus for the week will be a reception and opening ceremony for the community to meet new principal, Lori Brocato. Two IMAX movies will also be presented during the week.

For the week of July 16-20 the museum will feature an array of speakers covering a variety of topics pertaining to the Alabama Gulf Coast.

According to museum Director Lisa Allen there will be a series of special lecturers during the week.

“We’ll have speakers on fishing, boating safety, dolphins, birds and we can’t forget about the sea turtles,” she said. “We’ve also made arrangements for some special movies to be shown in the media room – one entitled Enchanted Reef and another one called Sea Monsters.”

Admission is free, but children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult.

“I think this is a wonderful opportunity,” Allen said. “We’re really excited. We’ve wanted to do this from the beginning, but just needed permission and funding.”

Sea, Sand, and Stars has been made possible through generous contributions from Brett-Robinson Construction, the City of Orange Beach and the Baldwin County Board of Education.

“The only problem with the facility is that up to now, tours are restricted to school groups, shutting out most members of the general public from experiencing the awesome exhibits and technology,” Johnson said. “This fantastic facility has been a hit with schoolchildren from across the region, and now another generous donation, administered by CBEE, will allow the general public a chance to experience what their children and grandchildren have experienced for the past five years.”

On Monday state biologist Roger Clay will talk about coastal birds and Genevieve Belou of the Alabama Coastal Foundation, will talk about coastal conservation

The Tuesday speakers will Jessica Powell of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration to talk about dolphins and hurricanes.

Mike Reynolds of Share the Beach will talk about protecting loggerhead sea turtles on Wednesday and Ken Drake of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary will speak on boating safety.

On Thursday Auburn University researcher Mark Hainds will have a presentation on the Longleaf Alliance and Gary Finch of “Gary Finch Outdoors” will talk about fishing in the Gulf of Mexico.

On the final day, July 20, Gulf State Park Naturalist Kelly Reetz will talk about the return of the bald eagle to coastal Alabama. Also on the last day, Anita Salinas and Susan Clement of the Environmental Studies Center in Mobile will present the Raptor Road Show.

More than a decade ago the seeds were planted for a hands-on facility for island school students to learn about our natural resources in the area. The idea soon drew the interest of several prominent business and civic leaders.

With their help, the Sea, Sand and Stars interactive facility became a reality.

The facility features a 5,800-gallon aquarium with a large variety of fish. In addition, the facility has a 38-seat planetarium with a Digitarium Alpha II Projector, technology used in the best planetariums across the world. The facility is equipped to tap into the Hubble Telescope and allows visitors a real-time look through this amazing window into space.

Sea, Sand, and Stars features a computer technology room, complete with 30 computer work stations. Just around the corner a laboratory allows students to get a closer look at marine life. Outside, an 800-foot boardwalk leads to four large outdoor gazebo classrooms where students learn about birds, plants, amphibians, and insects. In partnership with WKRG TV, a weather station, complete with measuring and monitoring technology, allows students to learn meteorology and then report the weather in front of an actual television news set.