CAMP HILL – In an effort to showcase all that PA’s 121 national parks and 20 forest districts have to offer, the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation is participating in the inaugural I Love My State Parks Week, a campaign hosted by the National Association of State Parks Foundations from May 8 to 15.
The United States has more than 8,500 state parks and forests covering 18.6 million acres with 52,600 miles of trails. Alongside these beloved natural areas, an army of groups of friends and volunteers are dedicated to maintaining them. The National Association of State Parks Foundations was formed by the leadership of park foundations, including the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation, which serves nearly 50 volunteer chapters throughout Pennsylvania. These foundations have joined forces to support each other and the vast networks of volunteers to provide a national voice and advocate for all state parks. The National Association of State Park Foundations strives to connect, build, elevate, and empower nonprofit partners of America’s state parks statewide and an effort toward that goal is I Love My State Parks week.
Kicking off on Mother’s Day, I Love My State Parks week aims to increase the visibility of state parks and raise awareness of their many benefits, engage new audiences and promote access, and connect with the public through personal testimonies, stories and photos showing why these spaces are so important. With daily themes and a ready-to-use social media toolkit, the National Association of State Park Foundations encourages all members, state park foundations, friend groups, agencies and partners to share and amplify I Love My State Parks Week content on their own social platforms to increase engagement.
You can participate by showing your love for PA State Parks by sharing your outdoor adventures, photos and special memories on social media, tagging PPFF and using the hashtags #ILoveMyStateParks,
ParksWeek, #ILovePAStateParks and #NASPF.
Meanwhile, I Love My State Parks Week is one of many special outdoor holidays celebrated throughout the year as part of PPFF’s new #GetMovingPA effort that calls on park and forest visitors and volunteers sharing video footage of their adventures and volunteering in PA parks and forests on social media. Learn more at https://paparksandforests.org/news/getmovingpa/.
Stay connected and learn about I Love My State Parks week events with the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation and our groups of friends statewide by signing up to receive PPFF’s weekly Take Five e-blasts and following us on social networks.