NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Sara Boario, Chugach National Forest June 4, 2010
(907) 743-9444
Beth Nordlund, Anchorage Park Foundation
(907) 350-9482
Marine Life Artist Wyland to Help Celebrate National Get Outdoors Day with Anchorage Youth
World renowned environmental artist to paint with young Alaskans
Anchorage, Alaska- Marine life artist Wyland will lead Anchorage youth in an artistic exploration of the connection between the health and sustainability of our water resources, public lands, and communities Saturday, June 12. The event is open to the public, and all are welcome to join in this celebration of National Get Outdoors Day.
The event will take place between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. at Mountain View’s Davis Park Rugby Fields. On site mural making, painting, music and other activities will provide fun for the whole family. Barbecue generously provided by the Rasmuson Foundation.
To help kick-off the event, “advance artistic teams” of Anchorage youth were prepared for the celebration by staff from the Anchorage School District, Alaska Geographic, the Anchorage Park Foundation, and the Chugach National Forest. School art classes contemplated mural design, landscape themes, and prepared sketches. Students will transform their concepts into murals live at the event. Completed murals will be displayed throughout the community, including the Credit Union 1 branch in Mountain View.
Wyland is well known in Anchorage for his “Whaling Wall” on JCPenney’s downtown Anchorage store. He returns as part of the nationwide FOCUS (Forests, Oceans, Climate, and US) campaign in partnership with the Forest Service and NOAA. FOCUS uses art and science to teach young people about our forests and ocean – and how these two irreplaceable resources hold the key to the future of our water supplies, climate, and global health. Some murals from this event may be exchanged with other Wyland FOCUS projects in Puerto Rico and Maryland.
Local opportunities for learning and building connections between children and nature start in our city and state parks and flow to the nearby Chugach National Forest, now a Children’s Forest. This National Get Outdoors Day event will help kick-off a summer season packed with activities for youth and their families across all public lands – including the Anchorage Park Foundation’s summer Arts in the Parks program. This arts program is offered by crews from the Youth Employment in Parks program in partnership with local artists at Davis Park. It recognizes Mountain View’s growing role as a neighborhood that supports the arts and emerging artists.
-30-
Collectively these organizations serve the entire Anchorage community with education, arts, and outdoor programming:
Alaska Geographic is the official nonprofit educational partner to Alaska’s forests, parks, refuges, and other public lands, including the Chugach Children’s Forest. With more than 50 years of experience connecting people to Alaska’s wild places, Alaska Geographic is a bookstore, publisher, educator, and supporter of Alaska’s spectacular wild lands. www.alaskageographic.org
The Anchorage Park Foundation strives to build Healthy Parks - Healthy People by mobilizing public support and financial resources for Anchorage parks, trails, and recreation opportunities. The Anchorage Park Foundation engages the community by employing teens in park improvement projects, recreation programs and arts activities through the Youth Employment in Parks (YEP) program and offering volunteer opportunities and challenge grant funding to revitalize parks and trails through the Neighborhood Park Fix-It initiative. www.anchorageparkfoundation.org
The Chugach National Forest was established in 1907, and is the second largest forest in the nation. Its 5.5 million acres of wild land, wild fish, wild ice, and wildlife inspire scientific inquiry, recreational activity, and community character. Last year, the Chugach was designated a Children’s Forest, a symbolic designation underscored with substantive programs connecting youth and communities to educational, career, and volunteer opportunities on their public lands. www.fs.usda.gov/chugach
The Anchorage Community Land
Trust develops healthy, prosperous communities by acquiring, developing,
and planning for the land and projects necessary to bring about sustainable
neighborhood revitalization and economic development, with a primary focus
on the Mountain View neighborhood. The organization leverages public
and private resources to acquire and develop properties that are strategic
to redevelopment efforts. The goal is to improve the quality of life
in the community by addressing issues important to Mountain View residents.
www.anchoragelandtrust.org
Credit Union 1 (CU1) is
a 100% not-for-profit financial institution whose wide-ranging social activities
and financial services represent a movement for positive change in Alaskan’s
lives. Each year, Credit Union 1 averages more than 75 community
service projects. In 2009, CU1 employees raised nearly $100,000 for
local community causes and volunteered over 1,350 hours of social service.
Last year, the credit union launched a website and extensive volunteer
campaign dedicated entirely to social service at www.oneforallalaska.org.
The Alaska State Park system
contains 3.2 million acres, and is the newest and largest in the
United States. Park areas vary in size and character from the one-half
acre Potter Section House State Historic Site to the 1.6 million-acre Wood-Tikchik
State Park. The system hosts more than 4 million visits yearly and
provides over 2,500 campsites, 128 trailheads, 37 boat launches, 60 public
use cabins and 340 latrines. The Alaska Division of Parks
and Outdoor Recreation is celebrating its 40th Anniversary
this year with events throughout the state. To see a full listing
go to: dnr.alaska.gov/parks/asp/40annvcalendar.htm
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration is dedicated to the stewardship of living marine resources
through science-based conservation and management, and the promotion of
healthy ecosystems. NOAA’s Habitat Conservation Division works to
restore and protect coastal, marine and anadromous fish habitats that support
the nation’s fisheries and other trust resources.
Special thanks goes to the Wyland
Foundation, our visiting partner, who is dedicated to promoting, protecting,
and preserving the world’s ocean, waterways, and marine life. Founded
in 1993 by environmental artist and conservationist Wyland, the Foundation
has helped children and families around the nation to rediscover the importance
of healthy oceans and waterways through public art programs, classroom
science education, and community events. The Foundation gives children
the tools they need to become more creative, positive and solution-oriented.
Learn more at: www.wylandfoundation.org
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
To receive official Forest Service information by e-mail, please subscribe by visiting http://www.fs.fed.us/news/subscription/
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, please visit http://www.fs.fed.us/news/subscription
If you wish to make changes to an existing account, please visit http://www.fs.fed.us/news/changes.shtml
