Support Us Articles

Learn more about Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore through articles related to fundraising, donations and volunteering.

Giving Tuesday 2025: the Lakeshore We Love needs you now more than ever

Giving Tuesday 2025: the Lakeshore We Love needs you now more than ever

Giving Tuesday began with a simple idea: create a day that encourages people to do good. Since then, it has grown into a year-round global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity. This year, we hope to inspire you to support the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, through Friends of the Apostle Islands.These are challenging times for the park and for the quarter million people who visit every year, and yet we are determined to make a positive impact on the Lakeshore, its many visitors and the surrounding communities. The dust is...

Friends wins $10,000 grant from 100 Who Care of Ashland and Bayfield Counties

Friends wins $10,000 grant from 100 Who Care of Ashland and Bayfield Counties

Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is honored to receive $10,000 from the local civic group, 100 Who Care of Ashland and Bayfield Counties. Group members chose to support Friends following a presentation by our Executive Director Jeff Rennicke. He outlined how we would put $10,000 to good use, enhancing boater safety with the Wave Watch program, bringing history to life with our lighthouse gardening volunteers, offering scholarships for individuals with accessibility needs through our new Access Opportunity initiative, and inspiring the next generation of Lakeshore lovers...

Friends of the Apostle Islands and you: the art of making a difference

Friends of the Apostle Islands and you: the art of making a difference

A letter from our Executive DirectorsDear Friend, With so many good causes out there this time of the year, how do you decide which organizations to support? Well, making a difference is an art. As you plan your charitable gift-giving this holiday season, we hope you will consider:Giving to support the a place you love: the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is one of only three national lakeshores in the country, “a unique collection of islands” according to Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day and sponsor of the 1970 legislation to create the national lakeshore.Giving to a group that...

How you can support the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore on Giving Tuesday 2023

How you can support the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore on Giving Tuesday 2023

Giving Tuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Since then, it has grown into a year-round global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity. And this year, we hope to inspire you to support the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, through Friends of the Apostle Islands. Earlier this year, thanks to a growing number of supporters, Friends reached its goal of raising $325,000 to improve accessibility in the park -- funding for an accessible ramp at Meyers Beach, the gateway to the mainland...

THE PERFECT GIFT: The gift of caring for a place you love

THE PERFECT GIFT: The gift of caring for a place you love

Think of the gifts these islands have already give you – the warm sand on your feet as you etch your footprints into a sun-warmed stretch of beach, the mystery of the sea caves with the harp-like drips of water all around, the sweet sailing winds in the sails, the starry nights around the campfire. To all who have been here, and even to those who are still dreaming of it, the Apostle Islands have been a gift of adventure, beauty, history, and memories.So when looking for the perfect gift this holiday season, look no further than the islands themselves. Available on our website you will find...

What a difference a year makes: A year-end letter from our Executive Directors

What a difference a year makes: A year-end letter from our Executive Directors

From the deck of a sailboat or the cockpit of a kayak, from a beach walk or the top deck of the cruise boat, when you look out at the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore you are looking into deep time. The sandstone of the cliffs can date back 700 million years. The lakebed itself was scooped out by glaciers that retreated perhaps 12,000 years ago. Even a single drop of water can take a century to work its way out of the lake basin. Against such a timescale, what can a single year mean?For Friends of the Apostle Islands, 2022 meant a record number of new members and supporters, volunteers...

Friends Volunteers Tend Historical Gardens

Friends Volunteers Tend Historical Gardens

Imagine tending something that is 112 years old. Three volunteers (limited due to COVID safety protocols) recently joined two National Park Service rangers with shovels and watering cans to tend the gardens at Michigan Island.Flowers bloom in front of the old Michigan Island Lighthouse – Erica Peterson photo“We are the keepers of the light” is a tune often sung at Big Top Chautauqua. Michigan Light was first built in 1856. Lighthouse families there kept gardens to supplement both their food and leisure life. Volunteers from Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore helped the park...

What Friends Are For: Watch Our New Video Introduction

What Friends Are For: Watch Our New Video Introduction

What is a Friends group? How do they help our national parks? How many are there? Good questions.  Of the 423 units managed by the National Park Service, over half have supporting partner organizations or “Friends” groups. From Friends of Acadia to Friends of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Friends of Virgin Islands, these groups support their parks in a diverse array of ways – from fundraising for the preservation of historic structures to organizing cadres of volunteers to plant gardens, clear trails, even pick up litter. Each year, the efforts of these combined groups contribute over...

Make a Friends Membership Part of Your Trip Planning for Your Apostle Islands Adventures

Make a Friends Membership Part of Your Trip Planning for Your Apostle Islands Adventures

Camping Permit? Check. Life Jackets? Check. Friends of the Apostle Islands Membership?  Launching an adventure into the Apostle Islands takes planning and all the right gear. Your membership with Friends can be an important part of it. Here’s why. Singing sand beaches, the whisper of waves against the shoreline, island nights strung with stars against velvety black skies, campfire stories of lighthouse keepers, shipwrecks, and strings of deer tracks on a sunrise trail. You are going to fall in love with the Apostle Islands, or if you’ve been here before, deepen your love and appreciation of...

In Memoriam: Walt Pomeroy

In Memoriam: Walt Pomeroy

Friends, and all who loved the Apostle Islands, lost a guiding light when board member Walt Pomeroy passed away on Tuesday, May 24th surrounded by his family including Lin, his wife of 43 years. Walt’s wisdom, guidance and unending ideas have been critical to the growth of Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and a myriad of other environmental organizations he worked with. The staff, board members, and volunteers of Friends send our most sincere condolences to his family and many friends. He will be missed and remembered. A ceremony will be held on Saturday, July 16 at Silver...