My Fellow Americans Family Fun Fest Looks at Biscayne National Park’s Presidential Connections

News Release Date: February 8, 2016

Contact: Gary Bremen, 305-230-1144 x007

HOMESTEAD, Fla. --- Four presidents spent time in Biscayne National Park and the rest are commemorated in other national parks including the White House. This Sunday, February 14, 2016, from 1:00 – 4:00 pm, Biscayne National Park’s Family Fun Fest theme is “My Fellow Americans,” featuring activities from five of these parks. The event also offers educational opportunities for parents with toddlers at Family Fun Fest Junior. The free event takes place at the park’s Dante Fascell Visitor Center, 9 miles east of Homestead. Free trolley service to the park is provided by the City of Homestead from Losner Park downtown.

“My Fellow Americans” features five hands-on and engaging activity stations located around the visitor center including:

• Hoover Ball – Learn to play the game invented for a President!
• Fishing with Lyndon – Lyndon Johnson and three other Presidents hung out at Biscayne National Park’s Cocolobo Club to go fishing.
• Remember the Ladies – Discover the inspiring role of the First Lady.
• Mount Rushmore – What might Teddy Roosevelt and Abe Lincoln talk about if they were REALLY neighbors?
• Obama’s Legacy – How has our current President changed the National Park System?
• Junior President – A special station for parents with toddlers!

Participants receive a passport to get stamped at each activity station, and those who complete all five activities (or two activities for Family Fun Fest Junior participants) will earn a specially-designed button to remember the day. Earning all five buttons in a season earns a Family Fun Fest Fanatic award in April.

Subsequent events throughout the 2015-2016 season look at more specific topics that also relate to Biscayne National Park:

• Wild for Wildlife! – March 13, 2016 – wolves and bears and dinosaurs? Oh my!!!
• Parks and Recreation – April 10, 2016 – How many ways are there to have fun in a national park? How high can you count?

Family Fun Fest is made possible through the donations of generous visitors and the Bobby Duryea Fund at the South Florida National Parks Trust, with additional support from the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserves, Coral Reef Senior High Art Magnet Students, ClubOne Crossfit, Cesar Chavez National Monument, and a host of dedicated volunteers.

The Dante Fascell Visitor Center is located at 9700 SW 328 Street, nine miles east of Homestead, Florida. For more information about Biscayne National Park visit nps.gov/bisc or follow the park on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at “biscaynenps.”

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About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 409 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov.