News Release

2017 National Public Lands Day

Date: September 11, 2017
Contact: Cody Goraczkowski, 507-825-5464 ext. 213

National Public Lands Day at Pipestone National Monument

Pipestone, MN: All National Park Service sites, including Pipestone National Monument, will offer free entrance on Saturday, September 30th for National Public Lands Day. In the event of rain on the 30th, the collection of seeds will be postponed until October 7th.

National Public Lands Day is the nation’s largest single-day volunteer effort for public lands. Seven federal agencies as well as nonprofit organizations and state, regional, and local governments participate in the annual day of improving the health of public lands and encouraging shared stewardship through volunteer service.

Join us for a national day of service and volunteerism at Pipestone National Monument. Volunteers are needed to assist with the seed collection from the native tall grass prairie. The seeds will be collected from 9:00 am to noon. Volunteers are advised to dress appropriately and to wear sturdy shoes for walking in the prairie. The seeds will be used to continue restoration of the native tall grass prairie on 15 acres of land donated to the Monument by the Trust for Public Land in 2006.

Volunteers who participate will receive a National Public Lands Day pass, good for free entry during the next year at public land sites managed by the: Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and USDA Forest Service. The Friends of Pipestone National Monument will be providing a light lunch and other refreshments for the volunteers after the seed collection.

Participants ages 5-13, which successfully complete the Junior Ranger Activity Booklet, will get a Jr. Ranger badge. The Junior Ranger program is designed so youth can make meaningful connections to the resources and special places by the National Park Service.
The winners of the 11th annual Friends of Pipestone National Monument photography contest will be on display in the visitor center. Please contact a Park Ranger at 507-825-5464 ext. 214 for additional information. To learn more about Pipestone National Monument, visit the park’s web site at www.nps.gov/pipe.

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for the 417 parks in the National Park System and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at www.nps.gov, on Facebook www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice, Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice, and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice.