News Release

National Park Week Events for Families and Military

Date: April 13, 2018
Contact: Anne Doherty-Stephan, 915-532-7273 ext. 124

Once a year we celebrate the people, parks, trails, historic sites, beautiful landscapes, and so many more remarkable places that are stars of the American heritage cared for by the National Park Service. We recognize National Park Week this year from Saturday, April 21st through Sunday, April 29th, and Chamizal National Memorial is offering multiple events to let the greater El Paso community join us in celebration.

Saturday, April 21st, the first day of National Park Week, is National Junior Ranger Day. Kids of all ages around the country “explore, learn, and protect” their national parks. Not only does El Paso have Chamizal National Memorial as its own national park, but there are several others within a day’s drive of the city. We’re happy to announce that we have invited park rangers and mascots to spend National Junior Ranger Day with us so the community can come and #FindYourPark.

National Junior Ranger Day activities begin at 10 am with meeting the mascots and park rangers. From 10:30 – 11:30 am, junior rangers rotate through three fifteen-minute activities with the parks of their choice. At each park’s booth, participants receive unique artwork that they can use to create collectible buttons. Visit all five parks by the end of the day to collect them all! From 11:30 – noon, families can choose to take a short break or participate in activities including chalk drawings, making mascot puppets, watching a video about the Memorial starring Chami the spotted ground squirrel, and playing a game to learn about national parks around the country. From noon – 1 pm, kids rotate through fifteen-minute activities with the parks they did not visit in the morning. The closing ceremony begins at 1 pm. Participants receive their Junior Ranger patches and can take photos with the mascots. Fourth grade students will also receive free national parks passes through the Every Kid in a Park program. Visiting parks include White Sands National Monument, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, and Fort Davis National Historic Site.

Chamizal National Memorial continues celebrating National Park Week with Military & Veterans Recognition Day on Saturday, April 28th. Although entrance to the Memorial and our programs is always free, we issue the America the Beautiful national park passes as a service to our community. Active duty U.S. Military members and their dependents are eligible to receive a free annual pass to over 2,000 national parks and federal recreation lands across the country. We would like to recognize our Fort Bliss military families by inviting them to come to Chamizal National Memorial on Saturday, April 28th between 10 am and 5 pm to receive their pass. While there are no America the Beautiful passes designated for veterans, those with a permanent disability can qualify for the free Access pass, and both annual and lifetime passes are available for purchase to seniors 62 years and older.

Please check our calendar for more information about these and other events taking place at Chamizal National Memorial.