BOULDER CITY, Nevada - As the National Park Service embarks on its second century of service, Lake Mead National Recreation Area is celebrating the significant accomplishments of its centennial celebration and engagement with the Find Your Park / Encuentra Tu Parque initiative.
“I am humbled by the dedication, hard work and enthusiasm that Lake Mead employees put into celebrating the centennial," said Lizette Richardson, park superintendent. “Connecting with the urban community of Las Vegas through the centennial and seeing people discover what is right in their back yard, has made this year unforgettable."
Throughout 2016, the park hosted around 150 youth programs, connecting with more than 7,000 students. Every Kid in a Park Passes were distributed to more than 1,800 fourth graders, granting free park access to them and their families.
More than 4,500 volunteers contributed 127,000 hours to the park to help clean up beaches, observe wildlife and vegetation, restore roads and more.
New partnerships were formed with the City of Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority to help promote the 23 national park units that can be reached within a five-hour drive of Las Vegas. The Find Your Park from Vegas campaign reached an estimated 2.5 million people. An additional 2.9 million people connected with the park via digital media.
The park also continued to improve its infrastructure. Katherine Landing Road received an $11.3 million upgrade and the River Mountains Loop and Historic Railroad trails were resurfaced, providing better accessibility for hikers and cyclists.
Planning is underway to build on the success of Find Your Park / Encuentra Tu Parque as the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation and other partners will continue the campaign’s momentum in 2017.
The Find Your Park movement will continue to engage new audiences, especially around significant moments, including National Park Week in April and the NPS 101st birthday in August.
Throughout the year, the NPS and its partners will invite the public to explore parks they haven’t yet discovered, build personal connections to special places in their communities and find ways to help ensure that future generations are able to fully experience their national parks and the NPS programs that steward America’s treasures.
Lake Mead will host a variety of events that focus on fun, science, education and recreation. Events include night sky programs, ranger-led hikes, volunteer cleanups, water safety programs, Junior Ranger Day, Get Outdoors Nevada Day and much more.
More information about the success and long-term legacy of the NPS Centennial is available online https://www.nps.gov/subjects/centennial/success.htm.
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Tags: nps centennial 2016 accomplishments
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
