Jared Schmitz

Freedom Park
200 S Monroe St
Prescott, WI 54021
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I’d like to introduce myself as the new board president for the Friends of Freedom Park and the Great River Road Visitor and Learning Center. I am thrilled to be leading such an important community non-profit, one that I have been a member of for the past three years. I look forward to leveraging new opportunities to increase the contribution that this amazing center has to the people within and around our town, as well as the many thousands of visitors that stop and enjoy this beautiful place.

If you haven’t been to Freedom Park, it’s worth the visit. The park overlooks the confluence of the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers with great wildlife viewing, train and barge watching, and relaxing to the expansive sunsets reflecting up the river. The volunteer garden group maintains manicured spaces throughout the park with interpretive signage. A playground keeps kids busy, and you can walk the paved walkways around the center. Within the building, we host educational events and story times. We host local artists’ work for sale throughout the year and have a gift shop area for some great gifts, toys, and greeting cards. We are currently going through a rebuild of our interactive exhibits that will be able to showcase and teach those visiting about the area and the nature around us. During open center hours, we have staff on hand to act as a concierge for the river road, informing visitors of destinations as they travel up and down the river. It is a gem for our town with so much potential!

I have been enjoying Freedom Park since I moved to Prescott in 2010 with my two young daughters. With a background in environmental and agricultural engineering, the history, the beauty, and the connection to nature and commerce that the park exhibits constantly excites me. I grew up in the driftless region of Wisconsin on a small four-generation dairy farm. As a family, we didn’t leave the area of our farm very often and I always dreamt of someday living in a place where I could see water, trains, and airplanes and yet still have the sense of connectedness of a small town. Prescott has given me this sense of belonging.

Becoming involved with the Friends of Freedom Park has since been an evolution of other volunteer opportunities that I am lucky to be part of. Most notably, being an active participant of the Coulee River Trails Group. Coulee River Trails was created through dedicated efforts by Freedom Park to begin the planning and implementation of a regionally significant trail system for our town. My current day job includes planning and design of nature trails, so I felt that I could use some of this knowledge to help.  My passion for the group also has lain in my concern for the safety of the kids in this town. The lack of safe walking and biking pathways needs to be addressed and I feel Coulee River Trails vision can and will help!

I am the sort of person who always wants to share my excitement of the world. I coach middle school cross country and lead the Community Education’s Ski Club. If there is a new class or interest to me, I will dive into learning wholeheartedly. I strive to see others grow, learn, and find new passions. As the new board president at Freedom Park, I hope to lead our park to new adventures with this same enthusiasm.

Freedom Park has so much to offer, and we hope to find a way to engage with everyone who can stop by.  The mission of the organization has three facets to focus on for its appeal:

1. To inspire – We want you to learn and find new passions.
2. To partner – We intend on cultivating relationships between cultural, community, and nature-oriented groups, fostering a sense of belonging and appreciation.
3. To connect – We hope to be a way to connect visitors to all the amazing businesses and opportunities in a way that brings us all together.

Using these principles as a guide, the board at Freedom Park and our wonderful Executive Director, Linda Schenk, hope to continue building an all-inclusive park and visitor center that you will want to visit time and again.

As such, we are always looking for anyone who wants to become involved. We believe everyone has a place within our park and invite you to reach out. Everything from participating in a park cleanup to developing and maintaining our gardens to helping us redevelop our exhibits or sitting as a board member for the Friends of Freedom Park, we will be ecstatic to have you involved. Also, as a non-profit that is run through grants and donations, we are always looking for donations and grant opportunities to help us continue to thrive and grow.

Most importantly, we want everyone to come enjoy the park and check out our programming and learn more about us, the community, and the world around us. You can check us out online at www.FreedomParkWI.org to learn more; and you can feel free to reach out by email personally to me at Jared.Schmitz@freedomparkwi.org.

Let’s build a stronger, more connected community, together.