When the Cub Scouts of East Jordan, Mich., donated $467 to the Jordan River National Fish Hatchery, they made history. Their contribution is the first the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has received since legislation in 2006 authorized nonfederal donations to the National Fish Hatchery System. Midwest Region Assistant Regional Director Charlie Wooley accepted the donation at an August 13 ceremony at the Elmira, Mich., hatchery. The hatchery will dedicate the money to the Baby Brookies, an educational program on the lifecycle of brook trout. 

Community partnerships, such as this one, are what Congress had in mind when it enacted the National Fish Hatchery System Volunteer Act of 2006. The act encourages the use of volunteers, promotes public awareness of resource conservation and encourages donations from nonfederal individuals and organizations.

“We have a group of young conservation heroes with us today – 32 members of the Cub Scout Pack 17,” Wooley said at the ceremony. “You share a unified interest to conserve our fishery resources.”

The 32 members of Cub Scouts of East Jordan Pack #17 raised the money they donated to the hatchery by hosting a bake sale in their local community.  They presented their donation to the Service at Wednesday’s ceremony at the hatchery. Roger Gordon, Jordan River NFH project leader, said the contribution will help fund a tank to hold brook trout in their early life stage for the Baby Brookies program.

Baby Brookies is part of a Jordan River NFH initiative to connect people with nature called Imaginature. An after-school collaboration with Mancelona Public Schools, Imaginature provides children with opportunities for unstructured and structured time outside. The Baby Brookies program allows fifth and sixth grade students to monitor and analyze the growth of brook trout at the hatchery. When the trout have grown to catchable-size, the hatchery stocks them in area ponds for youth-fishing events.

Wooley praised the work of the scouts and hatchery volunteers who attended the ceremony, “You are strong, dedicated and supportive of the conservation message of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and you exemplify the meaning of the word ‘volunteer’,” he said. 

Jordan River National Fish Hatchery is one of more than 60 federal hatcheries in the National Fish Hatchery System. The hatchery rears lake trout as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Program. For more information on the National Fish Hatchery System, visit http://www.fws.gov/fisheries/nfhs/.

Other Related Links:

Jordan NFH: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/jordanriver/

Volunteer Act of 2006: http://www.fws.gov/pacific/Fisheries/pdf/Public%20Law%20109-360%20Hatchery%20volunteer%20act%2010_06.pdf