On a September morning, a much-needed rain shower fell as a group ventured out to explore the boardwalk paths of Huff Park in Grand Rapids – a nature preserve in the Creston neighborhood with roots that go back decades to a gift of land from Peter Wege, a Steelcase heir and philanthropist.
Most attendees, including me, held off until the skies cleared before joining the fun as
Friends of Grand Rapids Parks (FGRP) wrapped up their final Explore Your Parks event of summer 2025 at this popular preserve.
As the skies cleared, people of all backgrounds gathered with binoculars, ready to track down bird calls and record their sightings. The guided walk, led by the
Grand Rapids Audubon Club in partnership with FGRP, was more than just a chance to spot warblers and robins – it was the finale of a summer-long program that brought people together within our city's parks and, in this case, through a fitting community partnership.
Throughout our conversations with attendees this morning, it became clear that the event had achieved its goal: highlighting parks as more than just playgrounds, but as vibrant hubs where science, education, and community intersect, fostering growth and flourishing through connection.
Building community through parks
For Lauren Davis, director of programs at Friends of Grand Rapids Parks, the concept is straightforward: parks are as valuable as the connections people build within them.
![]()
Tommy AllenNicole Perkins (third from the left) and her family enjoy city events that combine education and fun.
“The goal for our Explore Your Parks program is really to get the community out into the spaces that we have in Grand Rapids,” he says. “When you partner with groups like the Grand Rapids Audubon Club, you’re not reinventing the wheel – you’re amplifying expertise that’s already there.”
Since launching the program a few years ago, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks has partnered with user groups across the city – from skaters at the
Roberto Clemente Park's DIY skate park to users of a climbing wall at Highland Park, and now with birders at Huff Park.
![]()
Tommy AllenAmanda Duke from Montcalm County often visits Huff Park because of its unique wildlife.
For each initiative, Friends offers organizational support such as promoting events, securing permits, or providing equipment, while community partners contribute their specialized knowledge. By working together, they help break down obstacles that might prevent someone from taking a positive recreational step.
“The community, in a lot of ways, is the expert,” Davis says. “They know their parks, their neighborhoods. Our role is to amplify that passion so more people feel welcome to participate.”
A model of collaboration
This collaborative model is perfectly illustrated by the Huff Park birding walk, which was organized by Friends of GR Parks and guided by experts from the Grand Rapids Audubon Club, who shared their knowledge of bird species and migration patterns.
Daniel Goldberg, a biology professor at
Grand Valley State University and GR Audubon Club member, believes events like these are vital for both science and society.
“Spending time observing nature lets us know what species live in an area so we can protect them,” he says. “But it’s also about appreciation – reconnecting people who don’t get outside that often.”
![]()
Tommy Allen Professor Daniel Goldberg from GVSU Biology enjoys activities like birding that connect science with the community.
For Cynthia Maas, at the
Grand Rapids Public Museum, who participates in Audubon walks, the value is also personal.
“When you slow down, everyone shares the same gorgeous moment,” she says, explaining the mental health benefits of birding. “Feeling that calm together as a group is very powerful.”
This partnership between the Audubon Club and Friends of GR Parks shows what's possible when missions sync up.
“We do all of our events in parks. Why wouldn’t we want to promote a park-focused nonprofit?” Maas says. “Everybody’s welcome, whether it’s your first time birding or your 30th year.”
Bird migrations at the intersection of city and science
While the event was rooted in community connection, it also highlighted the scientific importance of places like Huff Park.
According to Amanda Duke, a pharmacist and Montcalm County resident who picked up birdwatching during the COVID-19 pandemic, Huff Park is a major migratory stopover point. Nestled among developed areas that date back to the region's early farm settlements, the park's 88 acres of wetlands and wooded trails provide crucial habitat for birds migrating through West Michigan.
“If we don’t take care of a park like this, birds aren’t going to have anywhere to go,” Duke says. “We simply won’t be seeing the diversity we do now in Kent County.”
Science supports her perspective. Research shows that even urban parks in developed areas can play a critical role in bird migration.
![]()
Tommy AllenLauren Davis of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks believes the true value of parks is in the connections they create.
A 2008 study in
The Wilson Journal of Ornithology found that migratory landbirds stopping in a New York City park were able to gain body mass at rates comparable to those in larger, wilder habitats, proving that small green spaces can be effective refueling stations.
And if we needed proof that parks can be powerful classrooms for community collective impact, we just had to look at the whiteboard at the end of the event. It was overflowing with the names of 43 separate species of birds spotted in Huff Park during this three-hour event.
The list on the whiteboard illustrates the value of having so many eyes glued to binoculars and tuned to observing nature. Many of these birders' reports are sent back via the popular Merlin Bird app to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, which created this observational tool built for collective impact and scientific research.
According to the scientific report
"Seasonal patterns and protection status of stopover hotspots for migratory landbirds in the eastern United States," field studies have identified numerous stopover hotspots across the U.S.
This study confirms what Duke says: protecting even small parcels of habitat can have a significant impact. It also reinforces observational insights that align with science – namely, that birds often return to the same stopover sites year after year.
This means that if one site is lost, an entire migration corridor can be disrupted.
This kind of programming elevates our knowledge, moving us from being passive observers to active researchers. That process is exemplified by this event and other FGRP programs, where curiosity has a chance to blossom.
Community voices
The human side of the event echoed the program’s broader goals: making parks accessible and building community through shared experiences.
Nicole Perkins, a resident of the Baxter neighborhood, brought her family to Huff Park. They love that Grand Rapids hosts events like Explore Your Parks, which are
educational, fun, and perfect for family bonding.
“Whether it's a local library event or a parks-centered educational activity, I’m always looking for free Saturday morning things like this for our family to enjoy,” she says. “We got into birding by using the Merlin app at home, so when I saw this event, I thought, let’s give it a try.”
For Duke, the connection runs even deeper.
“Working in health care, I needed to get outside and find some peace in nature,” she says. “Now, noticing birds makes me care more about the challenges they face – and that leads me to care more about the community around me.”
These voices illustrate what Davis sees as the real success of the Explore Your Parks series.
“At the end of the day, the strength of our work is the people side,” he says. “Community is important, and it’s hard to be a community when we’re apart.”
Stewardship as shared responsibility
Surveying the long list of handwritten names of species, it became clear that events like this emphasize our shared responsibility. Birding may start with looking up, but Duke insists it must also involve looking inward.
“As neighbors, we all have to be stewards of our own park,” she says. “Clean up after yourself, leave no trace, and keep things looking nice for others – and for the birds.”
![]()
Tommy Allen For Cynthia Maas, birding is just as much about welcoming people as it is about spotting birds.
This ethic mirrors Friends of GR Parks’ long-standing work, from litter cleanups to tree planting to habitat restoration. Their philosophy is that parks thrive when neighbors feel invested. As Davis puts it, Explore Your Parks isn’t about delivering activities from the outside – it’s about creating opportunities for people to shape and share their own public spaces.
Why programs like this matter
Huff Park birding was just one stop in a series that also included skateboarding, climbing, and biking events across Grand Rapids. In each case, Davis says, their program asked a simple question: What prevents people from trying something new in their park? Then answer it by removing barriers, providing resources, and building bridges for fresh connections to emerge around everyday activities.
The results are more than simple recreation. It’s stewardship. It’s community ownership. It’s science translated into everyday experience, intersecting with city living.
“The biggest success story to me is people trying something for the first time and walking away changed," says Davis. "Whether it’s learning about birds, learning to skate, or climbing for the first time—it changes how people see their parks, and how they see themselves in community.”
Looking forward
As Explore Your Parks closes its 2025 season, Friends of GR Parks is already considering what’s next: more partners, more neighborhoods, more opportunities to transform parks into places where community thrives.
Goldberg hopes these events deepen civic commitment as much as ecological awareness.
“You can’t only rely on counting birds; people need to see parks as places where their actions matter,” he says.
In that sense, the birding walk at Huff Park was never just about birds. It was about the power of people coming together to notice, learn, and care. It was about showing that the small, everyday actions of neighbors can have a ripple effect – through a city, an ecosystem, and even along the paths of birds that cross continents.
Photos by Tommy Allen
The Parks-People-Possibility series, made possible through a partnership with Friends of Grand Rapids Parks, will spotlight community-led initiatives to improve, create, and sustain the city’s parks and green spaces.