NEWPORT – Would you like to help support the future of marine education on the Oregon coast – and help create a beautiful piece of public art?

The Visitor Center at OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center announces its 2011–12 Glass Quilt Giving Campaign, an opportunity for donors to contribute to the Center’s marine education programs while building  a beautiful glass quilt, filled with images of Oregon’s marine life and the names of donors, in the center’s lobby.

The quilt is a series of 160 interlocking glass tiles, symbolizing the great web of life we experience in nature—and the web of support the Visitor Center relies on each day. Sponsor your own glass quilt square, imprinted with your name or a tribute to a loved one, for a tax-deductible donation of $250 or more.

All donations will support the Visitor Center’s marine education mission, teaching young and old to understand, appreciate and protect our oceans and coast.

To read more, and to make your tax-deductible donation through the OSU Foundation, visit http://hmsc.oregonstate.edu/visitor/glassquilt

The glass quilt, featuring photographic images of  Pacific marine animals fused into colorful glass squares was designed by artist David Adamson, of the 9th Street Gallery in Newport. A 1991 OSU graduate with a degree in biology, Adamson spent 10 years working as an HMSC marine educator, aquarist, field technican and videographer before leaving to work full time as an artist.