Give
Photo: From September to May, the Park conducts various volunteer stewardship programs for the public and private groups. The Friends organization routinely provides support in the way of supplies, equipment, and materials.
"Friends encourages donors to commit to specific fundraising campaigns or to its general fund."
Wetlands Park Friends' work in helping the Park with its operations, programs, and activities is ongoing. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, Friends can provide funding and support quickly. And we could use your help!
Your donation (of any size) to Wetlands Park Friends is fully tax deductible. Contributions go directly towards operations, programs and activities that improve or enhance the Park and visitor experiences.
Here are some of the ways you can help us help the Park:
Education
"Friends wants every 3rd to 5th grader in the Clark County School District to have the opportunity of experiencing the Park-nature close to home."
Since 2001, the Park has conducted over 56,000 educational guided field trips for elementary school children. Designed to supplement students' curriculum at school (typically grades 3rd through 5th), the trips are led by highly skilled and knowledgeable Park staff and Educational Guide volunteers and are free of charge.
Students of all ages come to the Park for Guided and Self-Guided Field Trips. Experienced staff and volunteers add invaluable knowledge and insights to the Guided programs. Friends is committed to providing bus transportation funding as one of its core objectives, so more 3rd through 5th-grade students can participate.
For teachers planning class field trips to the Park, sometimes their biggest challenge is figuring out how to pay for roundtrip bus transportation from school. In some cases, teachers can obtain the necessary funding from their school budget. In other cases, teachers must obtain funding from their students’ guardians, fundraise in another way, or request assistance from their school administrators.
During the 2022-2023 school year, 79% of the schools that scheduled field trips at the Park reported themselves as 100% FRL (free/reduced lunch program). As such, they had a need for bus transportation and made the appeal to their administrators. Fortunately, Friends was able to donate $11,500 to the Clark County School District solely for bus transportation. Recently, Friends obtained these funds through a grant from REI-Coop, so more children were able to participate in the Park programs.
An experienced Park guide gives a group of 5th graders a practical understanding of the "food chain"-the basis for relationships between wildlife and their habitats. For some students, visiting the Park is a completely new experience, unlike anything they've ever had.
Moving forward, Wetlands Park Friends wants to ensure that all FRL schools with children in grades 3 through 5 can obtain roundtrip bus transportation to the Park.
Let's give more students the opportunity to learn about and experience nature. To do this, Friends needs your help. Please consider donating to the Education Program.
Stewardship
"The Park has ongoing environmental management and maintenance needs. Friends provides important assets to make the work easier and better for volunteers and staff."
In addition to the needs of staff, hundreds of men, women, and children volunteer each year to help in managing and enhancing the Park's natural beauty.
Tending to the pickup of trash and other debris at trailheads and other areas is a common task undertaken by volunteers. On a recent weekend, over 100 volunteers picked up more than 1500 pounds of refuse during a Park "Wetlands Hands On" program.
Whether it's clipping scraggly bushes that need trimming along Park pathways and waterways, planting native plant materials, installing signage, or painting gates and other physical assets, staff and volunteers need reliable equipment and sturdy work gloves to perform their tasks.
Over the years, Friends has supplied the Park with thousands of work gloves for staff and volunteer use. We've also provided native plants, landscaping equipment, and ground maintenance materials.
The Park administration has a love/hate relationship with the American beaver that have taken up residence in the Nature Preserve. One of the beaver's favorite foods is wood from the cottonwood tree. To keep the trees safe from the animals, volunteers and staff routinely install chicken wire fencing around trees.
Nature close to home requires constant attention. Friends could use your help. Please consider donating to the Stewardship Program.
Special Projects
"There's always something that the Park needs and can't easily process through administration. It helps that Friends can be a 'friend' and get the job done."
When one of the Park's Animal Ambassadors (i.e., one of an assortment of native critters being managed in the Park's Nature Center) gets sick, or the Park needs supplies for an upcoming event, it's nice that it can count on Friends to pitch in.
Cal, the California kingsnake, is a favored Animal Ambassador in the Park. Friends often helps with the care and feeding of these native critters being tended to in the Nature Center. When Cal got the sniffles, Friends provided the Park with a quick and easy method to handle its veterinary bill.
Recently, thanks to a grant funded by REI-Coop, Friends underwrote the cost for the Park to produce a state-of-the-art, multi-language mobile navigation app for use in the Park and Park Nature Center and maintain it for the next few years. Aptly named the "Wetlands Park Navigator," the program can be downloaded for free from the Apple and Google stores. (please see the Friends NEWS page for the download links).
The Wetlands Park Navigator is a robust mobile app that can be downloaded for free and used in the Park, or anywhere. It's great for visitors to use for way finding on the trails, or even finding the parking lot where they parked their car.
Additionally, Friends has supplied decorations and funding for various Park-themed events, including its popular "Haunt the Wetlands," which is held in October.
Dressed as a butterfly for the Park's iconic "Haunt the Wetlands" event in October, this young participant is surprised to learn that many in the Park's American beaver population are as big as she is based on the size of this replica.
Friends could use your help in making programs and activities extra special. Please consider donating to the Special Projects Program.
General Fund
"Friends would be remiss if it didn't bring up its own operating needs."
Wetlands Park Friends relies on support from donors and members to run its operations. Given that Friends is an all-volunteer organization operating without paid staff and on a modest budget, it could use your help in underwriting the costs to run accounting software, manage website operations, have a dedicated phone line, and produce marketing materials to spread the word. The Friends board is appreciative of any assistance you can provide!
Tabling at the Park and other community events is one way that Friends gets the word out about "Nature Close to Home." Friends is committed to ensuring that the Park has a future in the Vegas Valley.
Help Friends help the Park. Please consider donating to the General Fund Program.
Corporate Giving
For corporate giving, please let us know of your interest by email: [email protected] or mail: Wetlands Park Friends, c/o Clark County Wetlands Park,7050 Wetlands Park Lane, Las Vegas, NV 89122. Please include your phone number. A Friends board member will be in touch with you shortly.
Alternative Ways to Make Your Donation
You can also make your donation by cash or check. Please use this form and follow directions.
Alternatively, a Friends board member would be delighted to discuss options in which you can provide for the Park in personal and meaningful ways through private and corporate donations. You also can plan your legacy to include a charitable gift to Wetlands Park Friends.