Participate in Great Outdoors Month

June is one of the best times of years to be outside and active in the great outdoors. Perhaps this is why in 1997, President Clinton proclaimed Great Outdoors Month, for the month of June. Since 2004, when President Bush was in office this declaration has been made annually. This proclamation was sought by dozens of conservation and recreational groups in order to coordinate the month with special events such as National Fishing and Boating Week, National Get Outdoors Day, National Trails Day and the Great American Backyard Campout.

By signing the proclamation, President Bush showed his solidarity with these groups. He wanted to help Americans to embrace a more active lifestyle, which in turn could help stem the tide of obesity, increase volunteerism within communities as they work together in joint projects to protect the parks and land, to increase awareness of the environment and as well as the simple enjoyment of being outdoors. Each year since that time, the sitting president has continued to proclaim June as Great Outdoors Month.

Since the time of Great Outdoors Month's inception, each year more governors have come on board to support this endeavor. In 2008, Great Outdoors Month had the support of 40 governors and even more individual communities.

The Goals of the Great Outdoors Month:

The purpose of Great Outdoors Month is to highlight:

Benefits to be gained by spending time outdoors with friends, families, & the community
Demonstrate the value of outdoor recreational activities
Increase volunteerism in the National Park System and local parks
Encourage Americas youth in health use of leisure time.

On March 2, 2009, a letter was sent to President Obama by the Children and Nature Network, the American Recreation Coalition, National Wildlife Federation as well as several other groups. The letter invited President Obama to follow in the footsteps of the presidents who have gone before him and sign and declare June to be Great OutdoorsMonth. The letter stated, "We write to you today to urge you to continue this tradition... especially in a year when healthy, safe, and inexpensive fun will appeal to more Americans than ever before." At this point in time, it is expected that he will sign this proclamation by the end of May 2009. In any case, states throughout the union have gone ahead to proclaim June as Great Outdoors Month and fun events are planned across the country.

Great Outdoors Week and National Get Outdoors day:

A special emphasis on being outdoors will occur June 7-13, 2009 as this is "Great Outdoors Week". This year all many states are getting ready for this event. Many of them will hold extra events on the June 13th the second annual "National Get Outdoors Day", also known as GO Day.

Derrick Crandall of theAmerican Recreation Coalition has made some exciting announcements about this year's activities. In speaking of GO Day Crandall stated, "we will feature... exciting recreation opportunities to those who attend National Get Outdoors Day events - we are calling them EChO-Events. Managers of state parks, national forests, national parks, wildlife refuges and more will be with us at the events and offer information on follow-up activities at some of the nation's greatest outdoor places - places readily reachable from the urban National Get Outdoors Day sites. These EChO-Events will include introductions to mountain biking and fly-fishing, hikes with rangers to see wildlife, kayaking and rafting and much more. And we'll arrange for the equipment needed at these follow-up events," said Crandall.

Although the targets of National Get Outdoors Day are urban families, the events open to everyone. There will be many hands-on recreation opportunities from using rods and reels to casting lessons. Lessons on compass and map use will be provided at some location. Other places will offer families chances to practice putting up and taking down tents in preparation for the Great American Backyard Campout event. State agencies and enthusiast groups provide rods, reels and casting lessons. Many sites offer orienteering courses, teaching youth about adventure with a compass and map. Further information on this national effort and specific events can be found at www.nationalgetoutdoorsday.org.

So go out and enjoy the outdoors. If you are looking for a great place to start, try one of our 58 National Parks. Information on volunteerism at these parks, a park pass and more can be found at http://www.nps.gov/ . As new information becomes available many states are updating the Great Outdoors Monthwebsite: http://www.funoutdoors.com/taxonomy/view/or/115. Check there for more information to come.

Sources:
http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/obama_asked_to_declare_june_great_outdoors_month/
http://www.funoutdoors.com/taxonomy/view/or/115
http://www.nps.gov/
www.nationalgetoutdoorsday.org