The 4th annual Friends of Moccasin Bend Lecture Series concludes with the Honorable Dirk Kempthorne, U.S. secretary of interior from 2006-2009, speaking on Monday at 7 p.m. at the Tennessee Aquarium Auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public. Attendees are asked to use the Members Entrance to the Aquarium.
Dirk Kempthorne was confirmed as the 49th Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior on May 26, 2006. In preparation for the 100th anniversary of the creation of the National Park Service, he led the Centennial Challenge, a groundbreaking public private partnership to repair our parks and encourage visitation.
Secretary Kempthorne obtained the largest operating budget for national parks in their history. The secretary frequently highlighted our national parks as a great American treasure and encouraged families and children to get outdoors and explore our lands. The Centennial Challenge Initiative was announced by Secretary Kempthorne as a major boost to help ready the National Park System for its 100th Anniversary in 2016. The initiative is a multifaceted approach, with public and private funding, aimed at engaging all Americans in preserving our heritage, connecting them with their parks with a special emphasis on linking children to nature, history and park resources, and strengthening park operations to keep them sustainable in the next 100 years.
Greg A. Vital, local businessman and president and CEO of Independent Healthcare Properties continues for the fourth year to underwrite the lecture series, as part of his commitment to preservation, conservation and national park advocacy issues. Video recording of the lectures for archival and educational purposes is underwritten by First Tennessee Bank.
For more information call 423-785-3030 or visit www.moccasinbendpark.org.