COLUMBIA FALLS — People who have driven along North Fork Road have probably noticed the Glacier Institute Big Creek Education Center. If not, you will soon because the whole campus is getting a much-needed upgrade.
Thanks to many donors — including a recent $250,000 grant from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust — the Restoration Big Creek Campaign is just shy of meeting its restoration fund goals.
As the official education partner of Glacier National Park, Glacier Institute provides camps, hikes, and much more to teach kids about Montana's outdoors.
Through the restoration, they plan to improve the buildings at the Big Creek location. Some upgrades have already been made, including the addition of employee housing.
“You know, it opens their eyes to a whole new world and it helps them understand their place in the bigger scheme of things. And with our mental health crises that are going on -- and just the whole world…kids just need a lot of time to spend outside and just kind of get back to that Montana lifestyle that we all grew up admiring and having ourselves. It's really awesome to be able to do the work of giving those experiences to kids again.” – Glacier Institute Director of Development Madyson Rigg
The next restoration phase will make the camp available to students all year instead of just during the summer.
So far, just over $1.4 million has been raised of the $1.7 million needed for the project.
Visit https://glacierinstitute.org/ for more information or to donate.
