All those who love the Blue Ridge Parkway, which runs 469 miles from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, should stay in touch with the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation. This dynamic nonprofit organization works to fill in the gaps that the National Park Service lacks the money to close along the scenic road.

The Parkway is an invaluable connection to the nature, history, culture, and lifestyles of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The route is dotted with campsites, trails, waterfalls, lakes, overlooks, forests, fields, and historical structures, and welcomed more than 15 million visitors in 2015, more than any other national park.

The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, the primary nonprofit fundraising partner for the Parkway, is made up of people who have a deep love for this majestic road and want to ensure that its natural beauty and the experiences it offers endure for generations to come. These individuals make up our Community of Stewards and help guide our work, which focuses on historical and cultural preservation, environmental protection, visitor amenities, and educational outreach.

By working with the Parkway superintendent and staff and the Foundation's supporters, the organization identifies critical projects and raise funds to address those needs, creating a stronger park and enjoyable experiences for the millions of visitors that come to the park each year.

Recent projects include:

-The rehab of structures at Johnson Farm in Virginia, where visitors can learn about late 19th and early 20th century farm life;

-The installation of remote cameras that capture the activities of wildlife, enabling park resource managers to better manage the habitats these creatures call home;

-The paving of Abbott Lake Loop Trail, creating the first complete ADA trail on the Parkway;

-The Rock Castle Gorge bioblitz, which allowed the public to take part in a survey to find and document flora and fauna in one of many biodiverse areas on the Parkway.

The Foundation’s mission also includes protecting cultural history and engaging the next generation of public land stewards. To improve the health of children and help them connect to the outdoors, the organization started the Kids in Parks program and opened its first TRACK Trail at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center in Asheville in 2009. In 2013, the Foundation took over musical programming at the Blue Ridge Music Center, milepost 213, which passes on the musical traditions of the region with bluegrass, old-time, Americana, and country blues performances.

These are just some of the vital roles the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation fulfills in support of the National Park Service mission. You can follow the Foundation at its website, by regularly checking in on the organization's page in Traveler's Friends of the Parks section, by donating to the Foundation, or signing up for its newsletters.