Refuge Friends – Your Place to Connect with Wildlife and People

From its start in 1903, the National Wildlife Refuge System has owed its very existence to concerned citizens eager to protect America's natural resources. Some of these passionate citizens have focused their engagement in conservation through refuge Friends organizations, now totaling more than 200 across the country with an estimated 40,000 members. Friends organizations are 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organizations with the unique distinction of having a mission supporting a single refuge, complex of refuges or a program of the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Friends organizations are crucial to the collective mission of the Refuge System to conserve and protect the wildlife of this great nation and help millions of Americans understand that their actions today determine the legacy we leave for tomorrow. To locate a Friends organization near you, click "Find a Friend" on the left.