After months of work, the Friends of Lake Sakakawea has a new home on the internet: www.lakesakakwea.com.
The site is the most visible in a series of recent additions and changes to the organization. The FOLS board approved the site overhaul this past summer.
Your one-stop site for Lake Sakakawea news and information
The new site was developed by Up & Running Web Design of Bismarck.
While the site provides information on the Friends of Lake Sakakawea, it was designed to serve as the primary information center about Lake Sakakawea.
The site will be frequently updated to provide links to news stories regarding the lake, including announcements from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Later this spring, an events section will be added which will include links to events in lake area communities.
“We want this site to be a one-stop shop, if you will, for people wanting to know about Lake Sakakawea,” said FOLS Chairman Terry Fleck. “We want people to go the Friends’ website first when they are looking for information about North Dakota’s Great Lake.”
FOLS can now accept tax-deductible contributions online
Among the site’s new features is an online membership page. As a 501(c)3 organization, the FOLS is dependent on the contributions of members. All contributions to the Friends of Lake Sakakawea are tax-deductible. Up until now, those donations could only be sent in by U.S. mail.
Membership dues fund the organization’s operations but, most importantly, have allowed the FOLS to offer ‘Gifts for Greatness’ grants. These $1,000 grants have been awarded over the years on a case-by-case basis to projects throughout Sakakawea country. From funding for new boat ramps to children’s playgrounds to campsite improvements to financial assistance for lake-area first responders, the grants have allowed the FOLS to support and make improvements to the region’s quality of place.
“The Friends are dedicated to making our great lake even better and improving the Lake Sakakawea experience for all,” Fleck says. “Our website is an extension of our work to keep people connected to the lake while they are off the water.”