prairieawakening

For around 20 years, Dallas County Conservation has hosted the Prairie Awakening celebration each fall. However, as the event continues to evolve it’s become clear it could use a more defined direction.

To that end, the Conservation Board is holding an organizational meeting this Sunday to form a Friends of Prairie Awakening group. Forest Park Museum Curator Pete Malmberg says the meeting will be held from 3-5 p.m. at the Bear Creek Nature Center in the Kuehn Conservation Area, and anyone with a passion for Prairie Awakening is welcome to attend. The group will handle vital functions for the event, such as planning, promotion, funding, and volunteer coordination. Malmberg explains why they felt a Friends group would be beneficial to the yearly celebration.

“That is an event we’ve done for many, many years. We started it before the turn of the century actually, as a way to bring the Native people back to the landscape and interpret the landscape. Well, over the years it’s evolved and changed. Anyway, it’s at the point now we need to get a Friends group going. We’ve had volunteers with it for years, but now we’re going to get a formal Friends group for the Prairie Awakening celebration. It’s a very popular event, and it’s time for that event to go some new directions and get some fresh ideas.”

Registration is required to take part in the meeting, and can be done by calling Dallas County Conservation at 515-465-3577.