“The Friends are genuinely passionate and dedicated to the parks and contributed endless volunteer hours and are so enthusiastic while sharing information to visitors, creating a memorable and positive visitor experience.”
The Friends of Interstate and Straight Lake State Parks were honored by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for our efforts in 2025. This award would not have been possible without the generous donations and volunteer hours of numerous individuals and both past and present board members. A tremendous thank you to all who made 2025 such a successful year!
The Friends of Interstate and Straight Lake State Parks are deserving of the Friends Group Award. This year, the Friends of Interstate and Straight Lake State Parks were instrumental in assisting with celebrating our 125th Anniversary here at Interstate Park. The Friends brought in several programs throughout the summer including topics such as geocaching, blue bird house building, and bird watching along with their Fall Celebration. In addition, the Friends provided the scenic boat tour and bus transportation at our Sept 20th Anniversary event along with several programs including nature journaling, fur trade program, and a CCC program. This is on top of the support they provide for our annual 1st Day Hike at Interstate and Straight Lake, Candlelight Night at Interstate, and WorkPlayEarth Day at Interstate. The Friends volunteered 2750 hours this year and many of those hours were dedicated to keeping the Ice Age Interpretive Center open for the public. Due to the Friends, we had 19,082 visitors to the Ice Age Interpretive Center from January through October of this year. Visitors came from 70 of 72 Wisconsin Counties, 49 of the 50 states and over 30 countries. The Friends have also improved the park via projects including new interpretive signage for the Silverbrook Mansion Area of Interstate Park, a native planting near the contact station, and, due to the Friends donation of $40,000, the Horizon Rock CCC shelter, which burned down in July of 2021, was rebuilt this past year. The Friends of Interstate and Straight Lake State Parks have done wonderful things this year and deserve to be recognized for it.
riends of Interstate Park and Straight Lake State Parks provided extraordinary services this year. To start, the Friends continue keeping the Ice Age Center open year-round and sell merchandise to generate funds that assist Interstate Park with multiple projects and services. Enhancing and protecting our natural resources is their key focus. Most recently, the Friends Group contributed funds to provide scenic boat tour for the 125th Anniversary Event on September 20th. In addition, the Friends funded two shuttle service vehicles for the event that transported visitors throughout the park. The Friends are genuinely passionate and dedicated to the parks and contributed endless volunteer hours and are so enthusiastic while sharing information to visitors, creating a memorable and positive visitor experience. Please consider the Friends of Interstate Park and Straight Lake State Parks for the 2025 Friends Group Award!