Friends of
Big Rock Park
Our Mission
To restore and preserve the Park for quiet enjoyment, environmental education and research.
About Us
Big Rock Park was a gift in 1958, to the City of Pella from Pete and Lucille Kuyper. They wrote, “It is our hope that the people of Pella and surrounding territory may derive much pleasure in the years to come from this park area, preserved as far as possible in its natural native state.”
Our Projects
Pella’s Big Rock Park is a treasure—a wilderness area with 83 acres of forests, streams, and trails. Technically a “bur oak savanna,” it is highly endangered. According to scientists with Wisconsin’s Savanna Oak Foundation, “intact oak savannas are now one of the rarest plant communities on earth.”
In 2017, the City of Pella’s Community Services Board questioned the environmental impact of adding new activities to the park.
Donate
In 2020, the Friends incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit. With your support we can conduct ongoing environmental studies, an experiential education program in the natural setting of Big Rock Park, where scientists and non-scientists come together to document and enjoy its living species and treasures.
Get Involved
The next meeting of interested Friends of Big Rock Park is planned for Sunday, Dec. 12, 2021 at 4:00 pm. at Central College , Roe Center (room 145), W. 3rd & University in Pella. Learn about the status of the park environmental study and discuss future plans for Big Rock Park.
Grant Award
The Friends of Big Rock Park received a two year grant of $10,998 from the Marion County Community Foundation to fund an environmental study of the plants and animals in the Park beginning in the summer of 2021. Watch this site for progress reports on the results of this study.
Jim and Sue Brandl, and Sherril Graham accept the grant check from Jacob Hughes.\