Horton Park group gets award

Chapel Hill - The Friends of Henry Horton State Park was awarded a $750 matching grant through the Tennessee State Park Connections program to purchase equipment to be used in trail building projects at the park. Sponsored by the Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation, this grant program helps fund greenway or trail projects connecting from nearby communities to one of Tennessee's beautiful state parks or natural areas.

The Friends of Henry Horton State Park received one of 20 awards the Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation gave this year for their innovative efforts to build and enhance the 4.3-mile hiking trail that will connect the existing Wilhoite Mill Trail and the proposed "Adeline Wilhoite Horton Trail," which will be on the newly acquired grounds (approximately 300 acres) of HHSP. The Friends plan to name the trail after the wife of former Governor Henry Horton, for whom the park is named. Their focus is to tell the story of how the Wilhoite family property became connected with Henry Horton through his marriage to Anne Adeline Wilhoite. This story is currently not told at the park. These funds will make it possible to purchase a trailer for transporting trail building tools, ATVs and equipment necessary for carrying out this task.

The funding for this award was made possible through the generous support of CSX Transportation.

The Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation is a statewide 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving and protecting Tennessee's rich heritage and natural treasures. The mission of the Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation is to create an interconnected system of parks, greenways, and wildlife areas from the Mississippi River to the Great Smoky Mountains and beyond. The Foundation realizes that to accomplish such an ambitious goal requires more than just a dedicated board of directors and a hard-working staff. "We continually look for ways to maximize our effectiveness through partnerships and collaborative efforts with others. State Park Connections enables us to create literal "on-the-ground" connections through the vision, dedication, and talents of other conservationists in Tennessee," said Kathleen Williams, President and Executive Director. "To date, we have given away over $250,000 to 148 conservation organizations," Williams said.

For more information on the Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation, call Kathleen Williams at 615-386-3171 or visit their website at www.tenngreen.org.