200 SCA Find Your Park Volunteers Hit the Urban Trail
In celebration of National Trails Day and in partnership with American Express, SCA brought together nearly 200 volunteers for a Find Your Park Day of Service at Fort DuPont Park in southeast Washington, DC. Despite cloudy skies and high humidity, energy levels were through the roof as volunteers accomplished an enormous amount of work to help this popular park prepare for another busy summer season.
“With so many hands, the work volunteers were able to complete in this one service day would have taken our park staff months,” said Julie Kutruff, Community Outreach and Partnership Manager for the National Park Service, as she welcomed volunteers to the park.
EJ Delpero, Platoon Leader for The Mission Continues – 4th Service Platoon, was also present to greet volunteers. “The Mission Continues is dedicated to empowering veterans facing the challenge of adjusting to life after service,” EJ stated during his opening remarks to the crowd. In particular, the mission of the 4th Service Platoon is to foster a relationship between community members and the National Park Service through park maintenance, improvement, and impactful community projects. SCA was honored to partner with The Mission Continues for this event. The 4th Service Platoon was out in full force, bringing dozens of US military veterans to continue their service as volunteers. Participants worked together to restore trails, build new picnic tables, pull invasive plant species, repair fencing, install interpretive signs, and remove over a ton of trash and debris from park.
Special thanks to American Express, the National Park Service, The Mission Continues – 4th Service Platoon, and the National Parks Conservation Association.
Thanks also to all the volunteers who joined from: Alice Deal Middle School, American University, Best Kids Inc., Boys and Girls Club – FBR Branch, Charles Flowers High School, Coalition for National Peace Day (CNPD), Duke University, Eleanor Roosevelt High School, George Mason University, The Girl Scouts of America, Holton-Arms School, James Madison High School, John Eaton Elementary School, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Marymount University, Northwestern High School, Parkdale High School, Redfin DC, St. Thomas More Catholic Academy, Takoma Park Middle School, UMMW Sista Circle Meetup Group, University of Washington, Washington Parks and People, and William Wirt Middle School.
