Sierra Club Illinois plans May 8-9 volunteer workdays at Wadlow Creek restoration area

ALTON - The Three Rivers Project of Sierra Club Illinois is calling for volunteers to support the two Workdays at the Wadlow Creek Restoration Area, formerly the Robert P. Wadlow Municipal Golf Course in front of the Alton Regional Multimodal Transportation Center that houses Amtrak. Volunteers of all ages are welcome, but parental supervision is needed for youth 16 year olds and younger.

The activity will be the same each day: the Wadlow Workdays will give local community members the opportunity to take action to protect the environment here in the Metro East by removing litter, last year’s plant debris, and invasive species from the creek restoration area, and planting up to 140 native plants. Volunteers are needed between 9:30am and 12:00pm: community members are invited to register for Friday’s event at sc.org/SpringPlantingMay8 and Saturday’s event at sc.org/SpringPlantingMay9.

“The Metro East is home to a unique ecosystem that contains three great rivers, oak-hickory forests, rich floodplains, and endangered nesting yellow-crowned night herons. Removing invasive species and planting native plants is crucial to our work to protect and conserve the Riverbend’s urban and wild spaces so that they’re healthy for generations to come,” said Three Rivers Project co-Coordinator Christine Favilla. “This area is home to a 1.9 mile Trail - a hidden gem in the middle of the City of Alton.”

Park in the Kohl's parking lot, nearest the trail head. Volunteers will gather at the dead end of Golf Road (by the no parking signs) and head down the trail. If you get there after they depart, please walk down to find them; volunteers can stay as long as they’d like. Event organizers recommend that volunteers wear comfortable clothing and close-toed shoes. Bring a water bottle and sunscreen/hat. Tools and snacks will be provided to all participants.

“The native plants were acquired through a generous 2025 grant from the Madison County Environmental Grant, in collaboration with the City of Alton,” said Favilla. “Thanks to the dedicated efforts of Lewis and Clark Community College’s Restoration Ecology Department Greenhouse, they were successfully over-wintered for us. We are incredibly grateful for their invaluable community partnership and support!”

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.8 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information about Sierra Club’s work in Illinois, visit www.sierraclub.org/illinois.

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