Home

About Friends

Friends of the Front Range Wildlife Refuges (Friends) is a nonprofit organization that supports the two largest national wildlife refuges in the Denver metro area: Rocky Mountain Arsenal and Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuges. Through active outreach and fundraising, Friends supports refuge programs, volunteers, environmental education, habitat restoration, and many other initiatives.

Support Our Refuges

Friends of the Front Range Wildlife Refuges staff and Board of Directors work on ancestral, traditional, and contemporary lands of the hinono’eino’ biito’owu’ (Arapaho), Tséstho’e (Cheyenne), Núu-agha-tʉvʉ–pʉ̱ (Ute), Ndé Kónitsąąíí Gokíyaa (Lipan Apache), and Nʉmʉnʉʉ (Comanche).

With this land acknowledgment, we affirm Indigenous, history, and experiences.

Nature Play at RMANWR

Inspired by neighboring resident requests, this project is about more than just outdoor play, t’s about access, connection, and belonging.

Community Engagement for the Nature Play project at RMANWR is funded by the Colorado Health Foundation. “The Colorado Health Foundation is bringing health in reach for all Coloradans by engaging closely with communities across the state through investing, policy advocacy, learning and capacity building.”

Through community engagement, we’ve identified key barriers that prevent under-resourced communities from fully accessing and enjoying the Refuge. One major challenge is a lack of awareness about the outdoor recreation opportunities available here. To address this, the Nature Play area is a stepping stone and an invitation for all people, especially families and youth, to form lasting connections with this unique prairie ecosystem.

The design of this Nature Play site centers community input through multiple opportunities at multiple locations neighboring the refuge for resident feedback and two volunteering opportunities at the project site.

Nature Play encourages exploration, confidence-building, and safe risk-taking in a space that is culturally relevant to the surrounding communities. Interpretive signs in both English and Spanish will ensure that information is welcoming and accessible. Located next to the visitor center’s youth Discovery Room, this space will also be ADA accessible, reinforcing our commitment to equitable access to nature.

We know that when children spend time in well-designed outdoor spaces, the benefits are profound—better physical health, stronger social-emotional skills, and a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors. By investing in this project, we are investing in our future, a future where nature is not only preserved but experienced, stewarded, and shared by all. View a summary on our Story Map!

Stay in the Loop on Nature Play at RMA

Check out our Campaign Page

Subscribe for Refuge Updates and Free Programs

Check out previous Newsletters by clicking the links below.

Click Subscribe to join for Refuge updates and upcoming events.

– February 2026 Newsletter

– Thank you for Supporting Friends

– January 2026 Newsletter

– January Nature Play Events

– Support Nature Play

– November 2025 Newsletter

– Government Shutdown Update Oct 2025

– Thank You Harvest Moon Sponsors

Celebrate Earth Day with RMANWR!

Thank you for celebrating Harvest Moon Appreciation Dinner

Thank you to our Sponsors!

Contact: vthurk@ffrwr.org to sponsor Harvest Moon 2026

In the News:

Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge sees revenue loss from federal government shutdown

by: Nate Belt

Posted: Oct 16, 2025 / 10:01 PM MDT

As the government shutdown continues, a popular wildlife refuge not far from Denver is feeling the heat, having lost out on thousands of dollars of revenue and furloughing most of its staff.

It’s not just the national parks impacted by the shutdown; the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge in Commerce City also employs federal workers, only two of whom were deemed essential to keep on. As the shutdown continues, they worry the hole in their budget will continue to grow as well. Read the Full Story.

Watch the Video

We took the Walk for the Wild 5K Challenge!

Together, we walked to thrive, and we walk to make sure wildlife thrives.

Walk for the Wild is an annual event to demonstrate our commitment to deepening human connections with nature and to protect the thriving ecosystems we depend on.

Walk for the Wild is an annual event in awareness and support of National Wildlife Refuges & their partners while we strive to get people moving a distance of 5K in nature in conjunction with National Wildlife Refuge Week, the second week of October.

Thanks for celebrating National Wildlife Refuge Week 2024 with Urban Refuge Day on Saturday, October 12th and Walk for the Wild 5K on October 19th. Check out some photos from our event at RMANWR below!

Montbello Community Inspires Art Projects at Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge

The Friends organization contracted local artists Michael Gadlin, Finley Baker, and Drew Austin to collaborate with students creating placemaking artwork at pedestrian entrances to the refuge. The artists worked with Montbello students from Environmental Learning Kids (ELK) and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Early Learning Center to help create the tall, nature-inspired pieces that spin when the Colorado breeze hits just right. ELK is a non-profit organization that helps underrepresented youth learn about math and science while connecting with nature. Read more…

Enjoy & Support your Denver-metro Urban National Wildlife Refuges

The Friends of the Front Range Wildlife Refuges (FFRWR) is a community that supports the two largest national wildlife refuges in the Denver metro area–the Rocky Mountain Arsenal and the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuges.

Through events, communications, advocacy and fundraising, we support the refuges in

Conserving and restoring native habitat and wildlife
Giving the public opportunities to experience wildlife and nature near a major metropolitan area
Providing environmental education in partnership with families and schools

We also support the refuges by:

Keeping our congressional leaders and other Friends Groups informed about the successes and concerns of our refuges
Soliciting expertise, ideas, funds, and materials from the community to help make our local refuges outstanding

Ultimately, our vision is to create two refuges in which native wildlife and habitat are maintained in a healthy ecosystem that is rich and diverse and that contributes to the education and recreational enjoyment of people from all walks of life.

The beautiful photos you see at the top of home page were taken by wildlife photographer, Dave Showalter, at Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. Roll over each image to see an expanded view of the site and the wildlife that calls the Refuge home.