A huge thank-you to Simmons Bank and the Simmons First Foundation for their incredible generosity and funding educational grants submitted by the Friends of Hagerman NWR! Thanks to their support, we now have binoculars and a collection of high-quality mammal skins and skulls that are used to spark kids’ curiosity about wildlife living in our own neighborhoods. These hands-on tools make learning come alive and help young nature lovers see wildlife in a whole new way. Community partners like Simmons Bank and the Simmons First Foundation make a real difference, and we’re so grateful to have them helping us inspire the next generation of nature explorers.

We also greatly appreciate the generous support of the National Wildlife Refuge Association that awarded the Friends of Hagerman NWR the O'Brien Prize. A bat house, bat detector, and other materials purchased with this grant have been integrated into the hands-on learning activities for kids on field trips to the refuge. Many kids and adults are unaware that several kinds of bats occur on the refuge and may even fly around their own property during hot summer nights due to their secretive habits. The O'Brien Prize provides new opportunities for our volunteers to engage kids about bats and foster a better understanding of these ecologically important mammals.