Volunteers sought for National Public Lands Day

Residents have until Saturday to sign up to participate in National Public Lands Day at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.

National Public Lands Day will be held Sept. 23. Participants at Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge will celebrate by removing trash from the Refuge and cashing in the trash for prizes. Organizations and individuals will be encouraged to assemble teams for a friendly competition. Prizes will be given for the most trash collected by a team, oddest object collected, most recyclables collected, and largest team.

The event will begin at 9 a.m. at the Visitor Center with a Leave No Trace briefing and clean up assignments. The event will end at noon back at the Visitor Center. Teams will weigh in trash and collect prizes. Teams will be treated to a lunch and have an opportunity to hang out and play games.

Individuals and teams are asked to RSVP by Saturday (registration will close when capacity is reached) by going to the link https://forms.office.com/g/DVbadYcVJg. If you have any questions, contact Naomi Baucom at [email protected].

National Public Lands Day is dedicated to enhancing and restoring America’s public lands for outdoor recreation — a day for giving back to the Refuge and the rich legacy of public land. The Refuge and the Friends of the Wichitas invite volunteers out for a morning of hiking and litter pickup along the Refuge trail system, roads, and lake shores.