Pocket Prairie at West Leyden
Four years ago, freshmen Javier Gomez and Wiktor Mindowicz proposed starting a pocket prairie at West Leyden High School. During that time, roughly 2000 square feet of native species have been planted providing a vital habitat for local wildlife to thrive. They have documented migrating warblers, hummingbirds, eight different species of bees, and many butterflies including monarchs and their caterpillars.
With the support of Mayor Sherwin, the Leyden administration, Leyden’s building and grounds employees, and their fellow ecology club members, Javier’s and Wiktor’s original vision will be fully realized. They wrote and submitted a grant that was fully funded which will allow them to invest $6,000 to substantially expand the pocket prairie, add interpretive signage, place a nesting box, and launch webcams for anyone interested in keeping tabs on the local ecosystem. The grant called “Power for Good” is being provided by ComEd and Open Lands. When complete, a large prairie planting will exist on school grounds that will provide the community an immersive resource that can be enjoyed by many.
