Kalamazoo area conservation groups and friends will have a chance to come together May 18 to experience
Asylum Lake Preserve.
Plans for the day started as a way to honor Montford Piercey and Renay Piercey-Nesius for their work to preserve the area and through the enthusiasm of its organizers the event grew into an afternoon to celebrate the land, too.
The preserve encompasses Asylum Lake and Little Asylum Lake and is open to the public as a passive-use recreation area under an agreement between the University and City of Kalamazoo. The property is used by many area residents as place for bird watching, running, walking, cross country skiing, swimming, and fishing. It also supports research and education at all school levels.
Lauri Holmes, of Asylum Lake Preservation Association (ALPA), says the day grew from the seed of the idea to honor the couple who were instrumental in organizing the Asylum Lake Preservation Association and its hoped it wil remind people that the preserve that they enjoy and maybe even take for granted is something that people had to work for.
"The day is bringing neighbors together and bringing the environmental community together," Holmes says.
Local naturalists and bird watchers will be able to take tours led by the Michigan Botanical Club and the Audubon Society through the preserve near Drake Road and Parkview Avenue.
Various groups working to protect the Earth and preserve its natural resources will have exhibits at a tent on the property.
Later in the day there will be the dedication of a memorial stone and plaque.
The 274-acre Asylum Lake Preserve is owned by WMU and managed by the University in conjunction with the community-wide Asylum Lake Policy and Management Council.
ALPA is a volunteer organization dedicated to assuring that Asylum Lake Preserve remains a natural open space, to see that it is preserved as habitat for wildlife, and for continued use by the community.
Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave Media
Source: Lauri Holmes, Asylum Lake Preservation Association
A Day of Celebration Events sponsored May 18 by Asylum Lake Preservation Association (ALPA), Asylum Lake Management and Policy Council and the WMU Natural Areas Program.
• Displays at Gibbs House by local environmental groups.
• Blue Grass music and refreshments. Tours
• 1:30 p.m.--Birds of Asylum Lake Preserve - Audubon Society
• 2 p.m.--Plants of Asylum Lake Preserve - Michigan Botanical Club
• 3 p.m.--A brief dedication of a memorial to Renay and Monty Piercey pioneers in the Association who were part of keeping Asylum Lake Preserve a natural area.
• 3:45 p.m.--History, Features and Future of the Preserve