National Park Service Truck Hits Streets of L.A.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT: Zach Behrens (NPS), 805-370-2385Charlotte Parry (Fund), 805-370-2345

National Park Service Truck Hits Streets of L.A.

As the National Park Service nears its 100th birthday, L.A.’s local national park unit has launched a LA Ranger Troca to bring the parks to people. The truck will rove city streets with rangers from Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to reach the next generation of park goers.

“We have over 40 miles of coastline and more than 500 miles of trail, yet there are scores of Angelenos who still have not enjoyed what the recreation area has to offer,” said Charlotte Parry, executive director of the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, which secured the grant funding for the truck via a generous grant from the Ahmanson Foundation. “I really look forward to seeing LA Ranger Troca connect residents with the amazing parkland in their backyard.”

The downtown L.A.-based truck will be found in spots around the city, from dense neighborhoods with limited access to green space to events across the region. Instead of static displays, the truck will deliver programs in the form of pop-up interactions for both youth and adults, such as a ping-pong photosynthesis bucket game and campfire programs using a solar-powered “fire.”

Photo: Ranger Kya hands out wildflower seed packets at LA Ranger Troca’s official debut at Olvera Street on February 24, 2016. Credit: Courtesy of the National Park Service

"There is no better way to celebrate the National Park Service's 100th birthday in 2016 than bringing parks and fun to the people we serve," said David Szymanski, superintendent for Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. “Thanks to a generous donation from the Ahmanson Foundation and the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, we will be using LA Ranger Troca to expand our services to the citizens of Southern California. There's much more to come -- at El Pueblo and in the mountains. Stay tuned!"

To see where the truck is heading next, follow @SantaMonicaMtns on Twitter.

The Santa Monica Mountains Fund is a locally-based non-profit committed to supporting the National Park Service in their mission to provide for resource protection and public enjoyment of Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. For more information, please visit www.samofund.org.

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA) is the largest urban national park in the country, encompassing more than 150,000 acres of mountains and coastline in Ventura and Los Angeles counties. A unit of the National Park Service, it comprises a seamless network of local, state and federal parks interwoven with private lands and communities. As one of only five Mediterranean ecosystems in the world, SMMNRA preserves the rich biological diversity of more than 450 animal species and 26 distinct plant communities. For more information, visit www.nps.gov/samo.