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The Ridges Organization In 1937, a group of ten concerned individuals formed a non-profit corporation called The Ridges Sanctuary, Inc. Their goal was to preserve and protect the wildflowers and plants located on a 30 acre piece of land near the town of Baileys Harbor. From this modest start, the Sanctuary has grown to encompass over 1600 acres of forests, wetlands, and the unique wildlife and plants that call these areas home. The mission of our founding members continues today: to protect the Sanctuary and inspire stewardship of natural areas through programs of education, outreach and research. The organization's Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws can be downloaded here.
How Is The Ridges Sustained? As a non-profit corporation, The Ridges Sanctuary is supported by its members. Operating funds are provided through donations, program fees, membership dues, bequests, occasional grants, and interest from an endowment of over $1,000,000. The Ridges is managed by its staff, an active Board of Directors, and many volunteers. Volunteers assist the Sanctuary in a variety of ways, including trail and bridge maintenance, Nature Store staffing, research, and conducting special events. Ridges volunteers contributed over 9,200 hours to the Sanctuary in 2007!
Volunteer Opportunities Volunteers are the core of
many important programs at The Ridges. Well over 100 dedicated individuals
assist our permanent staff in many different phases of our operations. Our
volunteers enable us to conduct programs like the Festival of Nature and Ride
for Nature, assist with surveying and monitoring various species within the
Sanctuary, and staff the Wednesday Crew: This dedicated group of men and women meets weekly throughout the year to work on a variety of projects: trail construction and maintenance, repair and upkeep of buildings and boardwalks, and many other duties necessary to keeping the Sanctuary's properties and facilities in great shape. “Special Skills” Volunteers: Do you have a unique ability, such as fundraising, photography, writing or computer skills, that might be used to benefit the Sanctuary? We may be able to put your special talents to good use on a Ridges project or program. Special Events: If you have a flair for planning and conducting "events," we have a place to apply your skills! Much volunteer help is needed for some of our most exciting events, including the Festival of Nature, Lighthouse Walk, Ride For Nature, and Volunteer Recognition. Lighthouse Keepers: A new volunteer group at The Ridges! Like the Wednesday Crew (which works on trails, grounds, and building projects) we'll do hands-on work. But we'll refurbish aesthetic elements of The Ridges: gardens, some landscape design, inside painting and papering. Next summer's project is designing, planting and tending cottage gardens around the Upper Rangelight building. If you are interested in helping with any of these projects, click here to fill out an online form, or just call The Ridges office at (920)839-2802.
Membership Consider becoming a member of one of the oldest organizations in Wisconsin dedicated to preserving ecologically significant habitats. By becoming a member, you will receive:
Most importantly, though, you will help to further The Ridges' mission of preservation, education and research, and insure that these wild areas will be protected for the children - and the flowers - of tomorrow. To apply for membership, click here, print and fill out the application form, and mail it with your payment to the address on the form. Thank you!
Ridges News The newsletter of the Ridges is published four times each year. It includes updates on ongoing projects, a listing of upcoming educational programs, volunteer news and notes, and "Quick Takes" on current natural happenings at the Sanctuary. To download and print the current issue, click here. (This is quite a large file, so it may take a few moments to load.) Past issues of Ridges News:
Winter 2006-07
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