Friends of Cape Henlopen State Park seek board candidates

One of the reasons Cape Henlopen State Park is one of the best parks in the nation is that it has strong support from its friends. The Friends of Cape Henlopen State Park have worked hard to enhance this great park.  The organization is governed by an 11-member board of directors who select four officers. They serve two-year terms, meeting 10 times per year. This year, the Friends are seeking people to run for four open director positions. Members will vote for these new directors at the annual meeting in January.

Over the years, Friends fundraisers have been primarily responsible for installing the osprey camera, purchasing handicap beach wheelchairs for the youth camps, building the playground, purchasing park benches that are placed along the trails in the park, installing bike fix-it stations in collaboration with Dogfish Head Beer and Benevolence program, and establishing and funding the Thatcher Education Fund. This fund helps schools in Delaware defray transportation costs for educational trips to the park.

The Friends are looking to partner with the Sussex Bird Club to repair and/or replace some aging osprey platforms in the park. And the Friends have run the Park Pedalers Borrow-a-Bike program for over 10 years, offering tens of thousands of visitors the mobility to explore the park. The popularity and success of this program has been duplicated by several other Delaware state parks.

The Friends Bike Barn stands next to the Seaside Nature Center. Opened in 2009, the shed accommodates the expanded fleet of bicycles used for the Friends’ Borrow-a-Bike program. This program began in 1999 with 15 and now fields a fleet of nearly 50 bicycles. They are available at no charge to park visitors. The Bike Barn is the most visible symbol of the work done by the Friends of Cape Henlopen State Park. It was built by volunteers who were willing to labor in the service of something they supported.

On National Trails Day June 6, the Friends installed two new benches at opposite ends of the Seaside Nature Center. One honors Stanley Lemiska, who died Dec. 18, 2014. The other honors Carl Lofgren, who died Jan. 20, 2015.

Lemiska and Lofgren were two of the three key Friends volunteers responsible for the construction of the Bike Barn. Along with Chuck Moore they provided the leadership and journeyman skills needed to convert a large heap of building supplies into a finished structure from the foundation beams to the hinges and hasp on the doors. They provided tactful leadership to more than a dozen less-skilled Friends who also volunteered to help.

Citing the efforts of Lemiska and Lofgren, among others, outgoing President Linda B. Gaskill noted that none of the Friends accomplishments would have been possible without a board of directors to spearhead these projects and the volunteers to work on the fundraising events and projects they sponsor. She credits past presidents Richard Thatcher and Edna Lemiska with noble work over many years.

The continuing directors have diverse interests in the park including birding, gardening and plants, hiking and biking trails and other outdoor activities such as fishing and beaching.

For more information about the Friends' current and past projects and about joining or volunteering, go to www.friendsofcapehenlopen.org, email fochsp@gmail.com or call 302-858-6127.