10/27/2026
✨ Stewardship Spotlight: Making a Difference ✨
Our dedicated volunteers were hard at work across our parks last week, helping restore native habitats, control invasive species, and care for our environment!
🌳 Our loyal weekly stewards tackled large invasive bittersweet vines along the Grand River at Chief Hazy Cloud Park, helping protect native trees and improve the health of the river corridor.
🌳 Thirty River Valley Credit Union volunteers joined the Kent Conservation District's "Strike Team" to control invasive autumn olive near the Cooper Creek Park entrance. Working in teams, they made great progress on our multiyear effort to restore native habitat throughout the park.
🌳 Scouting America Order of the Arrow and Grand Valley State University volunteers joined park stewards for a Tree-of-Heaven Hack-a-Thon at Millennium Park. Together, they worked to control this invasive tree, a preferred host for the spotted lanternfly (an invasive insect that threatens Michigan's forests and agriculture).
🌳 Job Corps students began preparing Long Lake Park's maintenance barn for winter by replacing damaged wood along its lower section. They also assisted with invasive species control, contributing to both park maintenance and natural resource stewardship!
Want to get involved? Visit 🔗 kentcountymi.gov/volunteer to see our calendar and register for a workday, great for groups, couples, and individuals who enjoy fresh air!
