Outdoors Fund requesting volunteers for Chilhowee Day Use Area Upgrads
CHEROKEE NATIONAL FOREST, Tennessee (WDEF) – The Great Outdoors Fund is asking for volunteers to help them improve facilities at the Chilhowee Day Use Area of the National Forest near Benton on June 24.
Here is their release:
POLK COUNTY, TN – June is Great Outdoors Month, a time to celebrate and appreciate the countless benefits that our public lands and waters provide. This year, The Great Outdoors Fund® (TGOF) is inviting community members to join them in a special event aimed at enhancing one of the area’s local treasures, the Chilhowee Day Use Area within the Cherokee
National Forest.
TGOF and the USDA Forest Service are concluding a month-long restoration of the Chilhowee Day Use Area. Volunteers will assist in assembling new picnic tables for visitors to enjoy. As a
token of appreciation, volunteers will receive special goodies for their hard work. Following the completion of the project, everyone will enjoy lunch and then hit the trails to experience the true beauty of the Cherokee National Forest firsthand.
“We’re really excited about this event and hope folks will consider coming out and lending a helping hand,” said TGOF’s Lori McCullough. “Not only will we be able to make a positive
impact on the area, but we’re also going to ensure we have a little fun while doing it.”
The event is scheduled for June 24. Participants will meet at the Ocoee Ranger Station, located at 3171 US-64, Benton, TN 37307, at 9 am EST. The day use area is approximately ten minutes away from the station. Anyone interested in volunteering is asked to RSVP here. All necessary tools will be provided. Volunteers are asked to wear long pants and sturdy boots for safety.
“This is one of the many public-private partnerships we’re working on across the country,” McCullough noted. “It’s just awesome to see all of these people come together and work to
ensure our public areas are being taken care of and will be able to be enjoyed by generations to come.”
Using funds from The Great American Outdoors Act, along with a grant from the Bronco Wild Fund, local Ford dealers turned to TGOF to bring other stakeholders together to make the
project a reality.
For more information, please contact Lori McCullough at lori@thegreatoutdoorsfund.org or 817-946-6909.
About TGOF: Established in 2017, The Great Outdoors Fund is a 501(c)(3) charitable
organization. It serves as a neutral funding mechanism facilitating collaboration between any
public agency responsible for managing outdoor recreation and the private sector. Its goal is to
provide a full range of high-quality, year-round recreation opportunities that are both
economically and environmentally sustainable, through public-private partnership projects.
About Bronco Wild Fund: Bronco Wild Fund works to increase access, preservation, and
stewardship of public lands. A portion of the profits from every Ford Bronco® model sold goes
directly to BWF initiatives with like-minded organizations like TGOF to further our shared
mission of connecting people to the outdoors, responsibly
