Saturday marks the 26th annual National Public Lands Day, the nation’s largest single-day volunteer effort. Community members are helping to restore one of the biggest urban parks in the nation, Rock Creek Park in D.C.
“This is a very special park to me, because I literally grew up in this park,” said Tony Richardson with the National Environmental Education Foundation.
It’s one of the many nonprofits that have partnered with the Rock Creek Conservancy and the National Park Service to make the cleanup day possible.
Volunteers are involved in painting, removing invasive species and picking up litter.
Though volunteers show up every Saturday to help, Rock Creek Conservancy Executive Director Jeanne Braha said this event is by far the largest and primarily focuses on restoring the forest.
“We’ll be planting native plants as well,” Braha said.
The partnership between Rock Creek Conservancy and the National Park Service is a joint effort that Julia Washburn, Rock Creek Park superintendent, said wouldn’t be possible without the community as well.
“It warms my heart. We can’t take care of this place without volunteer energy. We’re very blessed because of that,” Washburn said.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct Julia Washburn’s position with the National Park Service.
