FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway is the official Friends group and authorized non-profit for the National Park Service Blue Ridge Parkway. Friends' mission is to preserve, promote and enhance the Blue Ridge Parkway through fundraising, volunteerism, membership services and significant
programs. When you join FRIENDS and support its programs through donations, you make a significant difference in preserving the parks for future generations. Click
About Us to read more about FRIENDS
Programs and
Awards.
Breaking News!
Register Now for Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc., Inaugural Symposium
The Blue Ridge Parkway will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2010, but you don’t want to miss the anniversary launch in Roanoke (Va.) this October – 75 years after President Franklin Roosevelt and Senator Harry Byrd conceived this scenic road connecting Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park – featuring a symposium on Thursday, October 9 and concluding at a press conference on Friday, October 10.
Click here for more information and email staff@friendsbrp.org to register to attend.
FRIENDS Sponsors Weed Identification Workshop September 27 from 10:00 a.m. to noon at the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Click here for more information.
17th Annual Overmountain Victory Celebration September 11 - 14, 2008 at the Museum of North Carolina Minerals, milepost 331. Click here for list of activities.
As the Blue Ridge Parkway approaches its 75th anniversary, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is drawing on the GIS (geographic information systems) expertise of students at Warren Wilson College to help it propose a plan to manage secondary road access to the Blue Ridge Parkway over the next 20 years. The proposal is aimed at keeping the Blue Ridge Parkway a rural, scenic byway and ensuring that it does not become a commuter road that diminishes the visitor experience. Click for the rest of the story.
Virginia Tech, Virginia Cooperative Extension to hold public forums slated for Rocky Knob recreational area
Click here for the press release from Virginia Tech
Parkway Updates!
Fall Comes to the Blue Ridge Parkway!
Click here to view a list of the opening dates of all Parkway visitor centers, campgrounds, restaurants, and lodging. Please note that Craggy Gardens Visitors Center will be closed for the 2008 season.
Blue Ridge Parkway Offers Craft and Story Telling Workshops. Click here for more information.
Click here for a complete schedule of activities on the Parkway and read about concerts at Humpback Rocks, Blue Ridge Music Center, Mabry Mill, Roanoke Mountain Campground. Join the rangers in Wildflower Walks at Peaks of Otter, the Healthy Family Program at NC Museum of Minerals and Linville Falls, Junior Ranger Camps in Asheville, and Who's Minding the Baby? at Price Park Amphitheatre. Many, many more activities await the Parkway traveler!
FRIENDS has NEW! merchandise in the Online Store.
- New FRIENDS Water Bottle -- just $6.00!
- Hike the Parkway with Tim Pegram in his new book: The Blue Ridge Parkway by Foot: A Park Ranger's Memoir
- FRIENDS Lapel Pin (just $10) plus shipping.
FRIENDS has REDUCED! merchandise for sale in the Online Store.
FRIENDS Front License Plate reduced from $15 to $8.99!
Environmental Conservation Awards
FRIENDS and Mountain Homes partnered to award Environmental Conservation Awards (click inside to read about the winners of this award).
FRIENDS Announces Winners of the 2007 Photo Contest!
A special thank you to everyone who submitted beautiful photographs this year. We received over 250 entries! Click
HERE to see the winning entries!
FRIENDS launches major membership campaign for 2007-2008
Do you love the Blue Ridge Parkway? Do you want your friends to support America’s Favorite Scenic Drive? We can tell you how. We hope to double our size by 2008 – that’s our goal. Bill Hackworth, FRIENDS Board Member, inspired 25 new members to join. It was as simple as a letter.
Please click here to read
Bill’s letter. Then, email the FRIENDS office at
staff@friendsbrp.org, and we’ll help you mail your own letter to your closest friends. We want to help you tell your friends about our FRIENDS.
Parkway Extends Public Comment Deadline on General Management Plan Alternatives to May 31, 2008. Click here to read more.
Dear Friend,
I believe the Blue Ridge Parkway is in grave danger. After reading a New York Times editorial on the funding shortages and politicizing of the National Park Service, I want you to be aware of the crisis brewing for the Blue Ridge Parkway.
(read more)
HOW CAN I HELP?
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- FRIENDS needs volunteers to staff the information desk at the new Destination Center opening in Asheville. Please click on Volunteer for more information.
- Fund Parkway Projects!
- Donate to Save Parkway Views!
- Join a FRIENDS Chapter!
- FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway chapters depend on their volunteers to complete their projects and to maintain the Parkway. These chapters collect donations from donation boxes, sell FRIENDS' merchandise, provide volunteers to the speakers bureau and music center, maintain trails, fundraise, build bridges, and participate in viewshed projects. To become a volunteer, contact FRIENDS at 1-800-228-PARK (7275) if you wish to provide the leadership to assist with a chapter or begin one in your area. Click inside for more information.
Remember...
Your gift to FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway qualifies you for a full tax deduction for charitable contributions as defined under federal law 501(c)3. In additon to membership, there are many ways to contribute financially to FRIENDS: Memorials, In-Kind and Special Gifts, Employer Matching Gifts, Gift Memberships, Bequests by Will and Honor Gifts.
