UDALL FOUNDATION HOSTS EVENT TO

HONOR STEWART UDALL IN TUCSON,

ARIZONA

On November 13, 2009, at 1:30 p.m., the Udall Foundation hosted an event in Tucson, Arizona, to honor Stewart Udall and celebrate the passage of this legislation and the addition of his name to the Udall Foundation. Over 500 people attended the event or viewed it on a live Webcast.

Speakers at the event included:

  • Honorable Stewart L. Udall
  • U.S. Senator Tom Udall (NM)
  • U.S. Senator Mark Udall (CO)
  • Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (AZ)
  • Deputy Secretary of the Interior David Hayes
  • Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard
  • Udall Foundation Trustee Anne Udall
  • Chairman Ned Norris, Jr., Tohono O'odham Nation
  • Emcee: Terry Bracy, Chair, Udall Foundation

At the event, the Udall Foundation announced it has dedicated its Parks in Focus program to Stewart L. Udall, in recognition of his commitment to conservation and national parks. The formal announcement of the program name change was made by Senator Mark Udall (D-CO). The program will be known as the Stewart L. Udall Parks in Focus Program. During his tenure as Secretary of the Interior, he oversaw the addition of four parks, six national monuments, eight seashores and lakeshores, nine recreation areas, 20 historic sites and 56 wildlife refuges to the National Park system.

Since 1999, Parks in Focus has been connecting underserved youth to nature through the art of photography. With the help of trained Udall Scholarship alumni leaders, the Udall Foundation organizes week-long trips to introduce members of local Boys & Girls Clubs, many of whom have never before left their communities, to some of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the country. The Foundation provides digital cameras to the young participants to use and keep and teaches the basics of photography, ecology, and conservation while exploring national parks, wildlife refuges, and other public lands.

The program began in Tucson with the Tucson Boys & Girls Clubs and often uses the Grand Canyon National Park as the setting for Parks in Focus trips. The Foundation has since expanded and now supports programs with Boys & Girls Clubs in Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, and Washington with plans to include more states, more parks, and more participants in the near future. Since the program's inception, approximately 200 youth have completed the Parks in Focus program.

You may view the program honoring Stewart Udall at http://udall.gov/NewsAnnouncements/HonoringStewart.aspx

For additional information, contact Libby Washburn at 651.343.4660 or washburn@udall.gov.