Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park

For decades, Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park (FoRB) has partnered with state park staff to protect natural resources, improve park infrastructure, and foster deep community connections to nature. From invasive species control, litter cleanups, and stream monitoring to physical infrastructure improvements like rebuilding Hickam Cabin, our members and volunteers care for the land that sustains us.

We believe that positive outdoor experiences in early childhood and adolescence are essential for raising future caretakers of our environment. To date, our core youth initiatives—Nature Detectives (ages 0–6) and the Under-served Populations Outreach Program (UPOP)—have introduced over 5,000 local youth to the outdoors! 🍃✨

Here is a look at what our community accomplished together this year:

🍂 Expanded Youth Outreach:

• This fall, our Nature Detectives program welcomed 132 children and caregivers for hands-on, direct-experience learning in the outdoors. From counting bats in a "tent cave" and catching butterflies to hiking the Spring Brook Trail and making watercolor nature art, 132 young explorers and their caregivers joined us every Wednesday to connect with the natural world. 🐸🦋🪵Since 2013, Nature Detectives has been helping preschool children build confidence, curiosity, and a lifelong love for the outdoors through hands-on learning and outdoor play. A huge thank you to our program leaders, Missouri Master Naturalist volunteers, and partners at First Chance for Children for making this fall so special! 

• 382 youth engaged in nature exploration and basic outdoor skills through UPOP.

👟 Removing Barriers to Play: We purchased 30 pairs of dedicated water shoes so kids with only one pair of shoes could dive into stream activities without worrying about ruining their shoes!

🛝 Park & Volunteer Enhancements: We installed new playground swings and launched our branded FoRB Volunteer Vest Program to support and celebrate the incredible volunteers working on-site.

Remember, when we foster a genuine connection to nature during childhood, we equip future adults with both the desire and the practical skills to care for our local parks and the broader environment.

👉 Your donation directly supports our mission to get people to care about parks! Thank you!

For further information, visit us at https://www.friendsofrockbridgemsp.org/

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