FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - August 9, 2010
Posted: 8/11/2010
Stewart L. Udall Parks in Focus Trip in Washington
There will be a change of scenery for 12 Washington youth as they go on a photographic journey to Olympic National Park – a first for many of them.
The students, who will be armed with digital cameras, are participating in the Stewart L. Udall Parks in Focus program, which gives young
environmental leaders (Udall scholarship alumni) the opportunity to pass their knowledge to participants who might never have seen a national park or
spent time exploring a wilderness area.
Parks in Focus connects underserved youth to nature through the art of photography by introducing local Boys & Girls Club members to
some of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the country. The Udall Foundation not only provides digital cameras to the young participants to use
and keep, but also trains trip leaders to execute active, week-long, learning-intensive outings that explore national parks, wildlife refuges, and
other public lands.
The trip will take 12 youth from the Boys & Girls Clubs of King County on an active, nature-centered, photographic journey of Olympic
National Park from August 9-13.
The Udall Foundation trip leaders are Mark Schofield, Udall Scholar 1996, Nicky Smith, Udall Scholar 2008,
and Niki vonHedemann, Udall Scholar 2007. The participants also will be accompanied by representatives from the Boys & Girls Clubs.
The Udall Foundation was created initially to honor the legacy of the late Morris Udall, who represented Southern Arizona in the U.S. House of
Representatives for 30 years. The late Stewart Udall, who also represented Southern Arizona in Congress from 1955 to 1961, was Morris Udall’s older
brother. The two brothers were leaders in many policy areas, including natural resources and the environment and Native American issues.
They worked together on many initiatives while Stewart Udall was Secretary of the Interior and Morris Udall a member of Congress. In 2009, Congress
enacted legislation to honor Stewart Udall through the foundation, renaming it the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation.
The Udall Foundation carries on their legacies through a number of programs, among them, education programs designed to foster a passion and
commitment for the nation’s natural resources in the next generation. Stewart L. Udall Parks in Focus is one such program; it speaks directly
to the first objective of the Foundation’s enabling legislation: “To increase the awareness of the importance of, and promote the benefit and enjoyment
of, the nation’s natural resources.” The program began in Arizona with the Tucson Boys & Girls Clubs but has since expanded to support trips with
Boys & Girls Clubs in California, Georgia, Maine, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, and Washington. Since the program’s inception, approximately 300
youth have completed the Parks in Focus program.
For additional information, contact Libby Washburn at 505.332.9079 or washburn@udall.gov.
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