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Forest Preserve Board President Judy Ogalla (left) and Forest Preserve Executive Director Tracy Chapman (right) present Scott Mortensen with his 2025 Volunteer of the Year award. (Photo by Anthony Schalk) Supporting the Forest Preserve District’s volunteer services program is one of the many ways The Nature Foundation of Will County helps give people more of what they love about the preserves. In 2025, volunteers donated more than 12,750 hours of service to the Forest Preserve, allowing the District to expand its habitat restoration efforts and connect with more people through educational and recreational programs and events. In addition to helping with corporate workdays and securing funds for volunteer supplies, we provide volunteer site stewards with grants through our Restore Will County program. Since 2017, we have awarded nearly $30,000 through the program. This year, three grants were awarded. Site steward Scott Mortensen received $500 to purchase supplies and equipment he needs for restoration work at Hickory Creek Preserve, site steward John Fuqua received $500 to purchase native seed for the restoration work he’s conducting at Hammel Woods and the Forest Preserve District’s natural resource management crews received $2,000 to support various volunteer restoration projects. Scott, who was named the Forest Preserve’s 2025 Volunteer of the Year, has been a volunteer since 2000. As a site steward, his focus has been to control invasive species like honeysuckle and autumn olive as well as some buckthorn. He said he will use his Restore Will County grant to purchase chainsaw chains, bars and gloves to help “free the oaks” by removing small trees growing under large oaks so they have more space to grow. “The Restore Will County grant greatly helps stewards with the cost of equipment, equipment repairs, PPE (personal protective equipment) and supplies we need to accomplish our tasks,” Scott said. Scott is one of a dozen volunteer site stewards. These dedicated volunteers generally perform at least 40 hours a year to their projects at preserves across the county, said Julie Bozzo, recreation crew leader and volunteer liaison for the Forest Preserve District. “The dedication of site stewards is an incredible asset. We are fortunate to own the vast amount of land that we do, but our crew and contractors only have so much bandwidth,” Julie said. “Being able to ask site stewards to handle smaller projects in high-propriety areas increases the amount of restoration effort being made in our preserves. In doing so, many stewards also interact with the public and help spread the word about the important work that we do.” Julie will use the Forest Preserve District’s grant to purchase native seed to spread in areas where volunteers conduct restoration work. She is also encouraging more volunteers to get trained to support the District’s prescribed burn program, and hopes to replenish essential supplies like fire gloves and personal protective equipment. “In 2025, volunteers donated 2,200 hours of work to the natural resource management team. They helped the Forest Preserve District do more, made it fun, and kept it safe. They are all our partners in protecting nature and we are happy to support their work,” said Tara Neff, executive director of the Foundation. The Forest Preserve District offers a huge range of volunteer opportunities throughout the year. You can help them accomplish more by volunteering as much or as little as you like. Learn how to get involved here.

Pictured from left to right are Forest Preserve Executive Director Tracy Chapman, Forest Preserve Board President Judy Ogalla, Foundation Executive Director Tara Neff, and Forest Preserve and Foundation board members Julie Berkowicz and Dawn Bullock. (Photo by Anthony Schalk) The Nature Foundation of Will County donated $55,545 to the Forest Preserve District of Will County on May 14 to support preserve restoration, public programs, exhibits and visitor amenities across Will County. Foundation Executive Director Tara Neff presented the check to the Forest Preserve District’s Board of Commissioners at its May 14 meeting. “The Nature Foundation works all year long to bring funds and friends to the Forest Preserve District to supplement the budget,” Neff said. “We write grants, secure funds that are sometimes only available to 501(c)(3) organizations and can offer charitable tax benefits to our donors.” The donation included funds from the Foundation’s year-end fundraising campaign, business sponsorships, philanthropic organizations and corporate volunteer groups. The year-end fundraising campaign raised: $8,000 for Adirondack chairs, hat shop supplies and exhibit equipment for Isle a la Cache Museum $8,000 for signs at Hidden Oaks Preserve $2,000 for the Forest Preserve’s natural resource management crews for volunteer workdays; funding is provided through the Foundation's Restore Will County grant program. $3,525 for exhibit rental deposits at Four Rivers Environmental Education Center Business sponsorships included $11,500 from Old National Bank for the Fun & Food Trucks series and from Vulcan Materials Company for fishing derbies at Hidden Lakes Trout Farm. The Sgt. Thomas M. Gilbert Memorial Foundation contributed $4,150 for equipment and supplies for environmental education and public programs at Hidden Oaks Nature Center. Corporate groups also contributed $3,108 and volunteer hours through Neuco, Target Corporation and Goldman Sachs. The Foundation also received $15,270 from the estate of Jan Heideman to help fund restoration work at Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve in Crete Township. This was the final installment of the gift. “Her estate plan provided a total of over $300,000 to take care of a place she loved,” Neff said.“Her gift provided conservation with an extra $25,000 a year for about 14 years.”

(Photo by Anthony Schalk) The Forest Preserve District of Will County is dedicated to connecting people with nature, but at a few select preserves, it’s the region’s cultural history that is at the forefront. One such preserve, Isle a la Cache, includes the Forest Preserve District’s only museum. The Nature Foundation of Will County funds Forest Preserve projects and initiatives that protect nature, inspire discovery and bring people and nature together, and the Isle a la Cache campus in Romeoville is no exception. In fact, since 2015, The Nature Foundation has provided almost $85,000 in financial support to add a pollinator garden and make other facility improvements; fund exhibits; add to archival collections and storage; provide equipment and supplies for nature education; and provide animal care for their state-endangered Blanding’s turtles as well as a hybrid box turtle. “Because of that support, we’re able to create more engaging exhibits and continue improving the space in ways that feel meaningful and welcoming to our guests,” said Jen Guest, the facility supervisor at Isle a la Cache Museum. The museum, which is always free to visitors, focuses on the cultural and natural history of the Des Plaines River locally, with an emphasis on the 18th-century French voyageurs and Potawatomi who traded in the area. “The river has always been a hub of human activity,” Jen said of the museum’s focus on the Des Plaines River. “Before we had roads, this was basically the highway to get anywhere.” Recognizing its significance to both Will County’s cultural and natural history, the Forest Preserve District acquired the property in the 1980s and converted a restaurant/pub into what is the Isle a la Cache Museum today, said Forest Preserve District Executive Director Tracy Chapman. “This geographic and cultural importance, including its ties to French fur traders and Indigenous Peoples, made it a valuable property to preserve,” Tracy said. Because Isle a la Cache is the Forest Preserve District’s only museum, it adds another layer to how staff connect with visitors, Jen said. While other Forest Preserve visitor centers primarily help people connect with the natural world, staff at Isle a la Cache get to build on that by weaving in different perspectives. “We tend to lean into storytelling, helping visitors understand not just the landscape, but the people connected to it, like the Potawatomi,” Jen said. The museum’s permanent exhibits include interpretive panels about the site and region’s history as well as interactive elements, and it typically hosts several new exhibitions throughout the year, often with financial support from The Nature Fondation of Will County. Exhibits we are sponsoring in 2026 include the “I Am Not a Costume!” Story Exhibit, which ended April 12; the “Our Storytellers” basket weaving exhibit, which opens July 1; and “The Stick” traveling exhibition, which opens Sept. 23. “The museum is set up for play and exploration so you can engage with the exhibits in a more interactive way,” Jen said. Because the site is rich in both natural and cultural resources, it allows the Forest Preserve to broaden its focus and offer new opportunities to the public, Tracy said. “This specialized focus aligns directly with the District’s mission to protect and enhance both natural and cultural resources for the benefit of current and future generations,” Tracy said. “As a result, the museum serves as an important educational resource that broadens the District’s interpretive offerings beyond natural history alone.” This year, Isle a la Cache Museum was included in the state’s Passport to Illinois program that commemorates America’s 250th anniversary. Passport to Illinois encourages people to visit more than 60 monuments, museums, memorials, parks and historic markers across Illinois to learn about the people, places and events that uplift the ideals set forth in the Declaration of Independence: equality, freedom and the pursuit of happiness. As part of the initiative, people can pick up a passport from participating sites, including Isle a la Cache Museum, or download one online and then document the sites they visit. Jen hopes that being part of the Passport to Illinois program will introduce the museum to new people and showcase all it has to offer to those who might not have otherwise discovered it. “I think it really speaks to how unique the site is,” she said. “You have this combination of cultural history, especially the fur trade and Native American connections, along with a really beautiful natural setting along the Des Plaines River. It’s not something you find everywhere, especially in an area like this.” We encourage you to stop by the museum to see this special and significant part of Will County’s natural and cultural heritage.