Waterloo Natural History Association: 33 years as a support organization

(Chelsea Update would like to thank Tom Hodgson and the Waterloo Natural History Association for the photos and information in this story.)

In the 1970’s during Michigan’s last great recession, a 70-percent reduction in general fund support forced Michigan State Parks to eliminate staff positions and close many facilities and programs.

The Waterloo Recreation Areas staff was cut from 14 full-time positions to four positions. The Waterloo Nature Center (now called the Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center) and the Mill and Cedar Lake Outdoor Centers were closed. Those funds were never restored.

In fact, the remaining general fund support to Michigan State Parks was completely eliminated several years ago.

In 1981, a group of local citizens who recognized the value of the Discovery Center to the community negotiated an agreement to take over its operation until the DNR could afford to staff it again. They formed a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization called The Waterloo Natural History Association (WNHA).

For three years, WNHA staffed and operated the center.  Eventually, the parks division was able to find the resources to hire a full-time park interpreter and some part-time seasonal staff to operate the center as a DNR facility once again.

The WNHA continued on as the center’s primary support organization – the first ever for a DNR facility.  WNHA volunteers operated the center’s gift shop, and revenue from the gift shop, WNHA memberships and donations were used to supplement the center’s budget. Over the years, the WNHA raised about a half-million dollars to that end.  The funds were used to support speakers for weekend public programs, special events, exhibits, various construction projects, and to purchase needed equipment.

Some of the more notable projects funded by WNHA include the Discovery Center’s observation deck and spotting scopes, the living life cycle exhibit series, and most recently the replacement of the aging board walks on the lowland woods and bog trails.

WNHA also plans to support several projects in the coming year – including a park newspaper that will be published once a year and distributed to all park visitors.

There are also plans to replace the center’s antiquated audio-visual program with a modern digital presentation that can be shown on demand in the auditorium.  The old program relies on nine Carousel slide projectors.  These projectors are no longer made and replacement parts are increasingly hard to find. The new program would utilize state of the art software and just one digital projector.

Being the first of its kind, the Waterloo Natural History Association has been used as a model for support organizations that have been created for other state park facilities and programs throughout Michigan.  WNHA chairperson Gregg Burg says, “We didn’t realize the impact our local organization would have on the entire state park system.  We were just trying to save something of value for our local community. We greatly appreciate the support we have received from local businesses, organizations and individuals through the years.

“Our accomplishments would not have been possible without it,” he says, adding, “We are looking forward to at least 33 more years of service to the center and the community.”