Location

Wenatchee River Institute

Upcoming Events

9 upcoming

Sep

24

WRI Volunteer Open House

Thu · 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Want to get more involved in your community and support outdoor education and conservation? Join us for our Volunteer Open House at Wenatchee River Institute! Evening schedule: 5:00PM: Meet the WRI staff, connect with current volunteers, and learn about a variety of ways to give back Light snacks and drinks will be provided. - 5:30PM: A general presentation begins in the Bird Fest Room - 6:00PM: We will break into volunteer interest groups. For anyone interested in Youth Education, it's highly recommended to stick around for the training. Other interest group trainings will likely be Community Programs and Campus Maintenance. All are welcome—bring a friend! Please let us know you're coming by RSVP'ing at the red button above.

Give Back Nature

Sep

30

5th annual Sunset & S'mores

Wed · 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Save the date! Come gather with us at WRI for an evening of food and s'more fun! Jump into fall with us as the evening light fades and the stars come out. Join us for a meal, drinks, and immersive activities. Socialize with fellow WRI supporters, board members, staff, and students. This is a family friendly event. The evening's offerings will take place throughout WRI's campus, both indoors and outdoors. We look forward to gathering together and celebrating our special community! Tickets: Registration will open soon! The cost for this program Pay What You Can in recognition that not everyone can afford to pay for the full cost of the event. We hope that people who can, will pay to help those you cannot. On the next page, you will find 4 different levels. Please choose the level that works best for you and your family. We want to make sure anyone who wishes to come to this event can! Please provide any feedback on this process at the end of your registration, or email programs@wenatcheeriverinstitute.org. Children 5 and under do not need a ticket. Feel free to bring them with! Stay tuned for the delicious menu, catered by Ravenous Catering. You will be able to select any dietary restrictions in your registration once it opens. Thank you to our sponsors for making this event possible: Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort, South Restaurants, Ludwig's German Restaurant, Icicle Brewing Company, Winton Manufacturing, North Cascades Heating & Air Conditioning, and Goose Ridge Estate Winery.

Family

Oct

1

Bumblebee Habitat Restoration

Thu · 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Family-friendly volunteer sessions to get donated plants cozied up before winter! The Wenatchee River Institute is receiving a gracious donation of 300 native plants from the Xerces Society and Derby Canyon Natives to help build habitat for endangered bumblebees. These donated native plants provide meaningful forage and nesting opportunities where bees are struggling. By helping plant, you're directly contributing to the recovery of at-risk bumblebees in the region! This is a fabulous way to support pollinators and continue to build resilient native plant habitat on the WRI campus. Please RSVP for this date to let us know you're coming! This is a family friendly volunteer event! WRI will have the materials and hand tools available for the work. Holes will be pre-drilled to make planting easier for all. Feel free to park at Wenatchee River Institute (for free). You will meet Tiffa Theden, WRI's Land Steward, at the Outdoor Classroom, and walk to the planting site together. **Don't forget to sign the [Volunteer Waiver](https://app.waiversign.com/e/620bea1e8182280019e92967/doc/620beb518182280019e92e71?eventName=WRI%20Volunteering%202026) before the work party begins!**

Give Back Family

Oct

2

Bumblebee Habitat Restoration

Fri · 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Family-friendly volunteer sessions to get donated plants cozied up before winter! The Wenatchee River Institute is receiving a gracious donation of 300 native plants from the Xerces Society and Derby Canyon Natives to help build habitat for endangered bumblebees. These donated native plants provide meaningful forage and nesting opportunities where bees are struggling. By helping plant, you're directly contributing to the recovery of at-risk bumblebees in the region! This is a fabulous way to support pollinators and continue to build resilient native plant habitat on the WRI campus. Please RSVP for this date to let us know you're coming! This is a family friendly volunteer event! WRI will have the materials and hand tools available for the work. Holes will be pre-drilled to make planting easier for all. Feel free to park at Wenatchee River Institute (for free). You will meet Tiffa Theden, WRI's Land Steward, at the Outdoor Classroom, and walk to the planting site together. **Don't forget to sign the [Volunteer Waiver](https://app.waiversign.com/e/620bea1e8182280019e92967/doc/620beb518182280019e92e71?eventName=WRI%20Volunteering%202026) before the work party begins!**

Give Back Family

Oct

6

Bumblebee Habitat Restoration

Tue · 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Family-friendly volunteer sessions to get donated plants cozied up before winter! The Wenatchee River Institute is receiving a gracious donation of 300 native plants from the Xerces Society and Derby Canyon Natives to help build habitat for endangered bumblebees. These donated native plants provide meaningful forage and nesting opportunities where bees are struggling. By helping plant, you're directly contributing to the recovery of at-risk bumblebees in the region! This is a fabulous way to support pollinators and continue to build resilient native plant habitat on the WRI campus. Please RSVP for this date to let us know you're coming! This is a family friendly volunteer event! WRI will have the materials and hand tools available for the work. Holes will be pre-drilled to make planting easier for all. Feel free to park at Wenatchee River Institute (for free). You will meet Tiffa Theden, WRI's Land Steward, at the Outdoor Classroom, and walk to the planting site together. **Don't forget to sign the [Volunteer Waiver](https://app.waiversign.com/e/620bea1e8182280019e92967/doc/620beb518182280019e92e71?eventName=WRI%20Volunteering%202026) before the work party begins!**

Give Back Family

Oct

7

Bumblebee Habitat Restoration

Wed · 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Family-friendly volunteer sessions to get donated plants cozied up before winter! The Wenatchee River Institute is receiving a gracious donation of 300 native plants from the Xerces Society and Derby Canyon Natives to help build habitat for endangered bumblebees. These donated native plants provide meaningful forage and nesting opportunities where bees are struggling. By helping plant, you're directly contributing to the recovery of at-risk bumblebees in the region! This is a fabulous way to support pollinators and continue to build resilient native plant habitat on the WRI campus. Please RSVP for this date to let us know you're coming! This is a family friendly volunteer event! WRI will have the materials and hand tools available for the work. Holes will be pre-drilled to make planting easier for all. Feel free to park at Wenatchee River Institute (for free). You will meet Tiffa Theden, WRI's Land Steward, at the Outdoor Classroom, and walk to the planting site together. **Don't forget to sign the [Volunteer Waiver](https://app.waiversign.com/e/620bea1e8182280019e92967/doc/620beb518182280019e92e71?eventName=WRI%20Volunteering%202026) before the work party begins!**

Give Back Family

Oct

17

Fall Fungi Field Trip with Puget Sound Mycological Society

Sat · 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Join Wenatchee River Institute and Puget Sound Mycological Society for the Fall Fungi Field Trip! The day will begin at the Wenatchee River Institute with a meeting to set the scene and provide a safety briefing. PSMS guides will take groups of people out to different locations for fungi foraging and collection. There is no guarantee you'll find good edible mushrooms, but you will learn the basics of foraging and get an idea of habitats to explore in the future. The guided trips will be out foraging for about 3-4 hours. Groups will return to WRI to have their mushrooms identified. We'll close the day out with a group potluck! Note that the forage may include walking on uneven ground. Limit: 30 WRI participants

Nature

Oct

24

Make a Difference Day: Biochar Materials Collection

Sat · 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Make a difference in your neighborhood and community! WRI will be participating in this year's Make a Difference Day. We will be working in the work park to collect burnable items for an upcoming biochar day with Cascadia Prescribed Burn Association for this year's project. For this year's Make a Difference Day, WRI is teaming up with dedicated volunteers to gather and prep burnable materials that will be converted into biochar. We need your help to clear and collect these items to clean up our campus! This is a family friendly volunteer event! WRI will have the materials and hand tools available for the work. The more the merrier. Please let us know you're coming by RSVPing. Feel free to park at Wenatchee River Institute (for free). We can meet there and walk together over to the work park. There is also limited street parking available near the work park. **Don't forget to sign the [Volunteer Waiver](https://app.waiversign.com/e/620bea1e8182280019e92967/doc/620beb518182280019e92e71?eventName=WRI%20Volunteering%202026) before the work party begins!**

Give Back Family

Oct

25

Spooky Stroll and Moonlit Skies

Sun · 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM

Join Wenatchee River Institute, Wenatchee Valley Astronomy Club, and others for an evening of family friendly, slightly spooky fun! Suitable for young ones and the young at heart! It's the full moon and less than a week before Halloween. We'll kick off the evening with a Spooky Stroll at dusk. Listen for critters that come awake at night and hear stories about bats, owls, coyotes and more! After our walk, you can stargaze and see the full moon through telescopes, or you might warm up in the Red Barn with a cup of hot cocoa while creating a creepy craft. Or go on a moonlit scavenger hunt to look for things that glow in the dark with WRI's Land Steward. Check back for a more detailed schedule as we get closer to the event. Suggested cost of $5-10 per person, or $20 per family. RSVP by October 23rd with a donation of $5 or more and get a free hot cocoa for up to 4 members of your party! - 5:30-6:30 - Spooky Stroll: walk along the Wenatchee River and the Waterfront Park Trails to listen for animals and hear their stories from a WRI Field Educator - 6:30-8:30 - Drop-In Activities: - Moon-viewing and stargazing by telescope - Guided glow in the dark scavenger hunt - Creepy crafts - Hot cocoa Costumes encouraged! Please keep them family friendly. Bulky costumes, masks, or props may need to be removed before using telescopes.

Family Nature