Dallas, Texas – Writer and historian Wallace Stegner called national parks “the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.” In 2016, the National Park Service will celebrate its 100th anniversary. While the national spotlight will most likely focus on Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, the Texas Regional Office of the National Parks Conservation Association, or NPCA, is launching a Texas Campaign to ensure that the 13 National Parks in Texas – like Big Bend National Park and The Big Thicket National Preserve – get attention and celebrated as well.

The NPCA is the only independent, membership organization devoted to advocacy on behalf of the National Park System. It executes this mission in a number of ways, by:

Advocating for the national parks and the National Park Service;
Educating decision makers and the public about the importance of preserving the parks;
Helping to convince members of Congress to uphold the laws that protect the parks and to support new legislation to address threats to the parks;
Fighting attempts to weaken these laws in the courts;
Assessing the health of the parks and park management to better inform our advocacy work.

Edaren Foundation is partnering with NPCA to assist the Texas regional team to seize upon its existing groundwork, buzz, and network of support to highlight to Texan families what is in their backyards. The focus of this effort will be to draw more Texans and their families into national parks so that they can experience, learn about, and engage with these parks. By connecting younger and more diverse Texans—and more Texans overall—to parks, more children will grow up ready to successfully protect, restore, and strengthen national parks for generations to come. In the long-term, this will mobilize new advocates and political leaders as well as engender additional funding sources for parks — both in Texas and nationally.

Edaren is very proud to be a part of such an important anniversary in our nation’s history, as well as help Texas celebrate one of its greatest assets.