Friends of Sherburne proclaim amphitheater complete

The Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge have announced the completion of a new amphitheater at the Oak Savanna Learning Center at the refuge. The public is invited to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10:15 a.m. during the Wildlife Festival on Saturday, Sept. 28.

The amphitheater will be a place to host nature-related public events, provide an education space for school groups, and jumpstart collaborative events with other nature-focused community organizations.

It will provide a gathering space for refuge activities such as bird and wildflower tours, nature hikes, volunteer training, scout badge work, and more. The site has views of prairie, wetland, and oak savanna habitats and the wildlife that live in the refuge.

The Friends thanked donors and partners for making the amphitheater possible and acknowledged grants from the Central Minnesota Arts Board, Bernick Family Foundation and Knife River. Refuge staff, Terra Construction and Damon Farber Landscape Architects were key partners in the planning and construction of the facility.

To honor Indigenous peoples, the original stewards of the land, the Friends commissioned artwork for the new amphitheater from Holly Young, Dakota artist, and Giizh Agaton Howes, Anishinaabe-Ojibwe artist. Many tribal nations including the Dakota and Ojibwe were strongly connected to and thrived on the land and waters of the present-day Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge. The artists collaborated to create an engravable design which incorporates Native values and languages, and includes plants and animals significant to the refuge. The presence of traditional yet contemporary Native American art at the refuge gives visibility to the important past and current presence of Indigenous peoples in Minnesota.

During the Wildlife Festival, several programs about local wildlife and habitats will be held in the amphitheater.