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FRIENDSof the
Blue Ridge Parkway, Inc.
eNewsletter
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Preserving the Parkway for future generations. August 2008
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First of all, thank you for being a FRIEND of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Through the support of all of our donors and volunteers, in 2007 we have provided 1.2 million dollars of service to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Your e-mail address is listed in our members/volunteer database. As electronic communication become a larger part of our overall communications strategy, we want to assure you that your email address remains confidential.
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Roanoke Valley Chapter
Membership Meeting
The newly reorganized Roanoke Valley Chapter will hold its first general membership meeting on September 17, 2008 at the Roanoke County HQ/419 Library at 7:00 p.m.
The program will feature a presentation and book signing by Karen J. Hall, auathor of Building the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Blue Ridge Parkway Postcard Series.
Please join the chapter and its new steering committee as we brainstorm ways to preserve, promote and enhance one of the Roanoke Valley's most precious resources - the Blue Ridge Parkway! Click here for the full story and call the FRIENDS office at 540-772-2992 to RSVP.
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Next Generation Fund
FRIENDS has set up the Next Generation Fund to help bring children back outdoors. In addition, our organization has recently joined the No Child Left Inside Coalition (NCLIC), a broad-based organization made up of more than 600 member groups from across the United States. NCLIC hopes to see passage of the federal No Child Left Inside Act. This legislation would authorize major new funding for states to provide high-quality, environmental instruction. Funds would support outdoor learning activities both at school and in non-formal environmental education centers, teacher training, and the creation of state environmental literacy plans. To read more about the NCLIC, click here.
To donate to FRIENDS efforts to bring the children back outdoors, click here and designate your contribution to FRIENDS Next Generation Fund.
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Roanoke City Attorney Cycles the Entire 469 Miles of the Parkway
FRIENDS board member, Bill Hackworth, marked his 60th birthday by cycling the length of the Blue Ridge Parkway, from Cherokee, N.C., to Waynesboro, Va., and chronicling his journey on a blog on roanoke.com.
Click on picture above to read the blog.
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Virginia State Employees Can Make A Difference on the Parkway!FRIENDS is asking 120,000 Virginia state employees to "Remember the Parkway" when they select their charity of choice through the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) on October 1. FRIENDS Charity Code is 3535. Please remember that number when you make your decision to contribute.
In 2007, the workplace charitable giving among Virginia state employees bucked the national trend of double-digit reductions in contributions by raising over $4.52 million. This campaign will run for two months, allowing Virginia state employees to designate where they want their contributions to go starting January 1.
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Virginia Tourism Grant
FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway is partnering with Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources to help encourage citizen input for a tourism study designed to bring more visitors to the Rocky Knob Recreation Area. FRIENDS urges its members and other citizens to attend one of the two workshops to provide their ideas about how the area might market itself.
Click here to read more.
Workshop Dates:
September 4 from 4 to 7 p.m., at The Jacksonville Center in Floyd, Va., at 220 Parkway Lane South, Suite 1.
September 5 from 1 to 4 p.m., in the Community Room at Patrick Henry Community College in Stuart, Va., located at 212 Johnson Street.
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Register Now for Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc."s Inaugural Symposium.
The Blue Ridge Parkway will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2010, but you don't want to miss the anniversary launch in Roanoke this October - 75 years after President Franklin Roosevelt and Senator Harry Byrd conceived this scenic road connecting Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park - featuring a symposium on Thursday, October 9 and concluding at a press conference on Friday, October 10.
The symposium, underwritten in part by FRIENDS, will be held from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Vinton War Memorial followed by a wine reception. Entertainment will be provided by Timothy Seaman. There is no charge to attend the symposium but registration is required because seating is limited. To register, call the FRIENDS toll-free number at 800-228-7275 or visit FRIENDS website at www.BlueRidgeFRIENDS.org for additional information.Click here to learn more.
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Craggy Gardens Failed Wall Reconstruction
The Blue Ridge Parkway project to restore and stabilize the failed retaining wall near the Craggy Gardens Visitor Center, at Milepost MP 364.7 has been awarded to Bryant's Land and Development Industries. The Craggy Gardens Developed Area will be closed to all public traffic except for emergency or administrative access. The Parkway will be closed between MP 355.3, which is just south of the access road to Mt. Mitchell State Park, and MP 367.6, which is just north of the entrance to the Craggy Gardens picnic area, will remain in effect for the duration of the project. The project is scheduled for completion by May 16, 2009.
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Big Dig!
The Friends of the Mountains to Sea Trail will host a "Big Dig" on the Blue Ridge Parkway during the weekend of September 19-21, 2008 between US-421 and US-321 near Boone and Blowing Rock, NC. We will be building the MST as we close this major gap to Blowing Rock.
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Update on Hiking BRP
PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW TO PROTECT TRAILS IN NATIONAL PARKS!
Congress is prepared to vote on the National Park Centennial Fund Act (H.R. 3094), a bill that will improve and protect the natural and recreational resources of America's National Parks by providing enhanced funding to these special places.
Please take a moment to take action to protect hiking opportunities in National Parks by encouraging Congress to pass this important bill. To take action by writing your Representative and urging them to protect America's National Parks, click HERE. American Hiking Society joining with other recreation organizations that compose the Outdoor Alliance to bring you this Action Alert.
This bill will provide up to $100 million annually in federal funding for National Parks for 10 years and calls for a matching amount from private sources. It is part of the National Park Service's Centennial Initiative and represents a substantial increase in the NPS budget, after years of flat or declining funding. In February, the Administration jumpstarted the campaign by proposing a $230 million budget increase for fiscal year 2008, essential to restoring staff and facility capabilities. The increased funding could be used to address a variety of needs, including maintaining the approximately 46,900 miles of National Scenic and Historic Trails and 18,000 miles of other trails administered by the Park Service. For more information about the National Park Centennial Fund Act (H.R. 3094) click HERE.
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National Public Lands Day
National Public Lands Day is the nation's largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance the public lands Americans enjoy.
In 2008, 120,000 volunteers are expected to build trails and bridges, plant trees and native vegetation, and remove trash and invasive plants.
Register to join us for the 15th annual National Public Lands Day on September 27, 2008 and receive free materials. For more information about Public Lands Day, click here
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FRIENDS Members Make A Difference on the Parkway!
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FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Inc.P.O. Box 20986, Roanoke, VA 24018, Phone: 540-772-2992, 800-228-PARK(7275)
Newsletter Editor: Phyllis Peterson
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