Donate & Make a Difference
Thank you for considering a donation to the Friends of Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges. Friends greatly appreciates donations from current members and from other nature enthusiasts. Your gift will help Friends build awareness of, and community support for
the Lower Suwannee and Cedar Keys refuges.
the Lower Suwannee and Cedar Keys refuges.
Wish List
As a non-profit, Friends runs on the power of our members' commitment to the Refuges, on their annual and life membership dues, and on donations from both members and the community at large.
Wish-fulfillment partners are greatly appreciated!
Wish-fulfillment partners are greatly appreciated!
What is at the top of the Wish List now?
Binoculars for Junior Rangers - $1000
Loaner binoculars will help us show kids how to spot butterflies and birds. They will also demonstrate one of the tools used in Refuge field work. Email [email protected] with any questions.
Loaner binoculars will help us show kids how to spot butterflies and birds. They will also demonstrate one of the tools used in Refuge field work. Email [email protected] with any questions.
Educational Tools:
Replica Skulls of Wildlife Found on the Refuges
Pelican - $185
Alligator Snapping Turtle - $200
Snapping Turtle - $55
Spoonbill - $120
Free-tailed Bat - $45
These skulls from Skulls Unlimited will become part of the Friends Refuge Rover
outreach trailer available to the public for handling and examining.
Vista Property Restoration . . . Time is of the Essence!
In our role of providing support to the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges (Refuges), The Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges (Friends) has the sole responsibility for restoring and maintaining Vista or determining if it is even financially possible to save the historic property.
People ask, if it's a federal property (deeded by the Cummer family to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), why aren't they taking care of the property? Unfortunately, due to recent federal budget cuts, the USFWS does not have the funds to do anything to restore or maintain Vista.
Friends continues to pour our volunteers' time and our limited resources into saving and restoring Vista to its original glory as a sanctuary for visitors on the Suwannee River. But the goal is unattainable without considerable financial support from donors who care about the few remaining places that offer a glimpse into old Florida. Time is of the essence because the buildings constructed in the 1930s and 1940s are crumbling and in desperate need of saving.
Here are links to information that will help you understand the history of Vista, work that has been done, and the master plan concept to accomplish the vision.
As the saying goes, Think Big or Go Home! Before it's too late, that may just be what we have to do if we don't acquire substantial donations for this massive challenge being undertaken by our small 501(c)(3) organization.
Our team is available and anxious to meet and provide tours of Vista with potential donors who may want to sponsor specific restoration projects (e.g. houseboat, main house, boat house, dock) by emailing [email protected]. We also need donations for the general fund to be applied as need and priorities dictate. Those donations can be made by checking the Vista box in the Donation section below.
People ask, if it's a federal property (deeded by the Cummer family to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), why aren't they taking care of the property? Unfortunately, due to recent federal budget cuts, the USFWS does not have the funds to do anything to restore or maintain Vista.
Friends continues to pour our volunteers' time and our limited resources into saving and restoring Vista to its original glory as a sanctuary for visitors on the Suwannee River. But the goal is unattainable without considerable financial support from donors who care about the few remaining places that offer a glimpse into old Florida. Time is of the essence because the buildings constructed in the 1930s and 1940s are crumbling and in desperate need of saving.
Here are links to information that will help you understand the history of Vista, work that has been done, and the master plan concept to accomplish the vision.
- Vista Property History
- The Bender Report- a summary of the comprehensive historical, cultural, and structural assessment of the buildings including projected budget for individual projects.
- Master Plan Concept prepared in 2024 that imagines connecting people to nature!
As the saying goes, Think Big or Go Home! Before it's too late, that may just be what we have to do if we don't acquire substantial donations for this massive challenge being undertaken by our small 501(c)(3) organization.
Our team is available and anxious to meet and provide tours of Vista with potential donors who may want to sponsor specific restoration projects (e.g. houseboat, main house, boat house, dock) by emailing [email protected]. We also need donations for the general fund to be applied as need and priorities dictate. Those donations can be made by checking the Vista box in the Donation section below.
Wishes Do Come True
Since January 2023, all these wishes have come true:
- A new laptop computer, made possible by gifts from John and Donna Thalacker and Jay and Donna Bushnell.
- The Refuge found a way to provide the final funding needed for Friends' long-desired mobile community outreach center and Junior Ranger workbooks.
- Volunteers came forward for a hot, sweaty work day at the Cook's House to keep Friends from needing to hire a cleaning crew to prepare for the next phase of architecture work.
- Joyce and Ed DeHaan, bought Friends' former Chrome laptop that wasn't quite up to our current needs.
- Roger McDaniel and his son Robert found a way Friends could receive a year of our Adobe Design software that we need for producing brochures and interpretive panels.
- John Douglass fulfilled the wish for funding for Junior Ranger badges and in April for the funding needed to reorder the workbooks when the kids' interest far outran our expectations.
- Bob and Barbara Hudson fulfilled the wish for the funds needed to assure Friends could meet the required matching gift for the grant from the Florida Department of Historical Resources to start work on the Cook's House at Vista.
Mail Option
Mail your check to: Friends of Refuges PO Box 532 Cedar Key, FL 32625 |
OUR REGISTRATION NUMBER WITH THE STATE OF FLORIDA IS CH52376. A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE. |