By Lori Ehde
Three additional land acquisitions will more than double the size of Touch the Sky Prairie northwest of Luverne.
Touch the Sky Prairie was dedicated last summer after 355 acres were purchased from Bob and Barb Loosbrock for the purpose of restoring and protecting original local tallgrass prairie.
It’s owned and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System, but the local Brandenburg Prairie Foundation took the initiative to secure timely negotiations and transactions.
"U.S. Fish and Wildlife purchased the land, but it would have never happened without the Brandenburg Foundation," said Luverne' Randy Creeger, a foundation board member.
The Brandenberg Prairie Foundation was started in February 1999, by community members and photographer Jim Brandenburg to "educate, promote, preserve and expand native prairie in southwest Minnesota," according to the mission statement.
The Brandenburg Gallery on Luverne's Main Street is one result of - and vehicle for - that mission. Touch the Sky Prairie is another.
Creeger and fellow board member Dave Smith couldn't wait to announce the most recent additions to Touch the Sky Prairie Monday.
"Touch the Sky Prairie now totals 809 acres of restorable prairie. In time, this will be a beautiful prairie much like our forefathers found as they moved west," Creeger wrote in a prepared press release.
Milo and Loretta Konz sold 237 to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Betty Mann sold 55 acres and the fourth tract of 162 acres was purchased from Arnold and Mardella Hansen, with help from their children Diane Vandenhoek and Dan Hansen.
"This land is now public land for you and me to enjoy and generations to follow," the release states.
"The fact that it's part of the Wildlife Refuge System means that this is forever," Creeger said. "It will last for generations."
Touch the Sky Prairie is a large block of unbroken prairie with unique rock outcroppings, which have protected much of it from being plowed for cropland.
Now with the additional tracts, the area encompasses much of the ridge, which is one of the highest locations in the county. "Once you get on top you have a 360-degree view," Creeger said. "You can see well into Iowa. It's pretty cool."
For this reason, area Native Americans have told Foundation members that this area was a popular spot for "vision quest" ceremonies.
The location, five miles north of Luverne and a three miles west of Highway 75, is near Brandenburg's childhood home, which is one reason he selected that site.
Creeger and Smith said the land is accessible to the public now, but restoration and development of the property will be an ongoing effort.
Fences and sheds were removed this spring, weeds were sprayed and native prairie grasses were seeded.
The area is currently marked with Wildlife Refuge signs, but eventually a Touch the Sky Prairie sign will be erected, and the 10-acre home site of the Hansen property will eventually serve as a parking lot and visitor center.
Vision 2002 is Nov. 9
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service purchased the property, but the improvements need local funding, some of which has already come in the form of grants (from the Southwest Minnesota Foundation and Blandin Foundation).
But the Foundation, a 501(3)c corporation, is always seeking local donations.
The next fund-raiser for Spirit of the Prairie and the Brandenburg Prairie Foundation will be Saturday, Nov. 9, in the Blue Mound Banquet Center, Luverne.
An appetizer social hour will be from 6 to 7 p.m. and the auction starts at 7. Admission is by advance tickets only, and they can be purchased at the Brandenburg Gallery or by calling 283-1884.
While complete prairie restoration is still a distant dream, Brandenburg hasn't wasted time capturing the beauty that already exists there.
His most recent exhibit, now on display at Luverne's Brandenburg Gallery, features Touch the Sky photos, including brilliant sunsets, flowing waterfalls and colorful butterflies on blossoms.