Friends of Ottawa National Wildlife

“The form 990 will be reviewed by the finance committee. The finance committee will make a recommendation of approval to the board. The board will review the form 990 and act on the recommendation of the finance committee.”

“No documents available to the public.”

“Youth programs: it is a priority of fonwr to connect youth with environmental education and career development opportunities on the refuge. -- internships: fonwr offers internships for college students or recent graduates pursuing degrees in conservation fields. Interns assist with visitor services, biology, law enforcement, and maintenance programs. This year fonwr provided 10 internships for a total of 4,018 hours of work and funded training opportunities for interns. --career pathways: together with the united states fish and wildlife service, fonwr continued a cooperative agreement for the career pathways program to allow interns opportunity for advancement and selected two technician positions. These technicians contributed 3,120 hours of work for community engagement, intern recruitment, and invasive species projects. --environmental education: fonwr sponsored field trip transportation grants to local schools, bringing 40 students to the refuge for environmental education programs. Fonwr sponsored the turkey hunting workshop and youth waterfowl hunting workshop which reached over 50 youth conservationists. Additionally, fonwr awarded two 2,500 scholarships to high school seniors who are pursuing conservation careers.”

“Fonwr supports the mission of the ottawa national wildlife refuge by helping to protect 11,245 acres for wildlife and fostering its use by 400,000 visitors annually. Fonwr extends the visitor experience by operating a nature store within the refuge visitor center. Through marketing and outreach, fonwr shares information online about the refuge and friends group through email updates, social media, and the www.friendsofottawanwr.org website which also features the rookery nature store online. Printed quarterly newsletters and annual reports share news about refuge projects, accomplishments, and program updates to keep visitors connected. Activities such as art classes and workshops, and events such as lorax day, chili cook-off, migration-a-thon, howloween, and the holiday open house bring new user groups to the refuge grounds to diversify visitation and deepen community involvement.”