Staff photo / Ashley Fox Chris Litton, left, development director for Mill Creek MetroParks, talks with donor Nancy Brundage, of Canfield, during a tour of the Ford Nature Center on Thursday. Brundage gifted $25,000 for a space in the center where people will bird watch.

YOUNGSTOWN — Looking around a room with mostly glass windows for walls, Nancy Brundage was pleased with how the space that will be known as “Nancy’s Nook” is coming along.

“It’s beautiful. I love all the windows. I can’t wait to see all of the furniture,” she said.

Brundage was given a quick tour Thursday of the Ford Nature Center in Mill Creek MetroParks, which is undergoing renovations.

Several years ago when fundraising efforts were announced, Brundage was the first person to donate, gifting $25,000.

“When I heard they were going to renovate this place and have a space for bird watching, I thought, ‘I’ve got to get that.’ That’s why I gave my money first,” Brundage said, laughing.

Officials with the park share Brundage’s enthusiasm and said they are grateful for her dedication to the park.

“I’m thrilled that Nancy had an opportunity to come out and see the progress that is taking place with the Ford Nature Center, especially” Nancy’s Nook, Chris Litton, development director for the park, said.

“Nancy has been a tremendous advocate of nature education through the MetroParks, and her bird nook will be a place where people can come to relax, learn and enjoy wildlife in a very unique setting,” Litton said.

During the walk-through with park administration, Brundage inquired if big, comfortable seating would be available in her namesake area.

“I like it,” she said when she initially stepped into the room, taking note of the bird-proof glass and a professional painter outside, painting trim.

Brundage wanted the space to be named the “nook” so people can visit and relax while watching birds and enjoying the scenery that is behind the nature center, she said.

For 27 years, she led bird walks through the park.

Her favorite bird is the tufted titmouse. “It’s perky,” she said, going on to explain it’s a gray bird with a white belly, rusty sides and a crest similar to a cardinal. “It’s jaunty and perky, and intelligent at the same time with its big, inquisitive eyes.”

Plus, she said, it’s a bird that can be found locally.

Brundage, 84, was born in Youngstown and has lived in Canfield since 1985.

Her husband of 59 years, George, died last year. They were together for 12 years before they were married.

George was a city planner, and his career took them around the country, Brundage said.

Finally in 1985, they made their way home with George eventually taking a position with the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments, settling in Canfield.

She worked processing insurance claims throughout the couple’s travels.

It was also in 1985 she became the park’s first volunteer.

During a park board meeting, which Brundage faithfully attends, an announcement was made. “So, I just signed up right then and there,” she said.

“Nancy is a leader,” Litton said, adding she attended every monthly board of commissioners meeting up until the pandemic. “Her dedication to Mill Creek has been amazing.”

In addition to park supporter, volunteer and nature enthusiast, Brundage is also a certified volunteer naturalist, as well as a master gardener.

Located at 840 Old Furnace Road, the Ford Nature Center, a stone mansion, was built in 1913 and was donated to the park in 1968. It opened as the headquarters for nature education in 1974.

Revitalization work of about $3.5 million began last year and will continue in phases until completion in 2022.