The Nebraska Game and Parks Foundation • Nebraskaland
work on our projects, talk and eat. Five of us are quilters and
we have one scrapbooker who we're slowly converting into a
quilter."
The Foundation's fi ngerprint on the construction of the
mini-lodges at Ponca, as well as the Governor's Row mini-
lodges at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park, has been immense,
raising millions of dollars to build them. But their work at
either park isn't limited to these projects.
At Ponca, funds from the Foundation also established the
aquatic center, replacing a relic originally opened in 1956. From
locals wanting an afternoon dip at the pool to out-of-towners
marking Ponca as a vacation destination, the aquatic center is
just one more reason to visit this northeastern Nebraska park
jewel.
At Eugene T. Mahoney State Park, the Foundation's reach is
just as profound. From the purchase of the property in 1985
to the recently completed Crete Carrier Riverview Lodge, as
well as the upcoming raging river water slide addition to the
aquatic center, the Foundation remains the center point for
completing any number of projects.
But the Foundation's work stretches beyond the projects
themselves, as seen from Johnson and her group of quilters
regardless of where they travel. This is how traditions start.
And local businesses benefi t because of these traditions. For,
as Sarah Johnson and her group know all too well, if you're
going to visit Ponca State Park, you must visit the soda
fountain at nearby Keller Drug as well. Yet not before hiking
or driving throughout the winding roads at Ponca — looking
for deer or visiting one of the park's scenic overlooks of the
Missouri River valley, their time at Ponca becoming their
lodge away from home.
With Foundation assistance, Ponca State Park's aquatic center replaced a pool originally opened in 1956.
JENNY NGUYEN-WHEATLEY, NEBRASKALAND
The Bison mini-lodge at Ponca fi lls every fall with a group
of quilting friends from across the region. Because of the
Foundation, friends and family are able to get together and
do what they love to do. PHOTO COURTESY OF SARAH JOHNSON
