NASHVILLE – Tennessee State Parks will host volunteer events in September across the state as part of First Lady Maria Lee’s Tennessee Serves initiative.

 “We are proud to partner for the second year with Tennessee State Parks and bring Tennessee Serves volunteer events to parks across the state,” said Lee. “We appreciate the many Tennesseans who have volunteered to help preserve the historic beauty of our state and look forward to a great month dedicated to serving our state parks.”

 “The first lady is an inspiration for volunteerism in our state, and we are proud to be a part of the Tennessee Serves program again this year,” Jim Bryson, deputy commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, said. “This is also an excellent way to keep our parks in great condition.”

 The service opportunities at the parks are for all ages and skill levels. They include activities such as landscaping, invasive plant removal, litter pickup, and trail maintenance. Projects include clearing debris at Camp Hazlewood at Paris Landing State Park; cleaning buildings and doing trail work at Fort Loudoun State Historic Park; cleaning up storm damage at Mousetail Landing State Park; cleaning the shoreline of the French Broad River at Seven Islands State Birding Park; and cutting and treating non-native Japanese Knotweed and Multiflora Rose and clearing trash and rock dams at Roan Mountain State Park.

 Tennessee Serves projects at parks also coincide with Public Lands Day at the parks on Sept. 26.

The first lady launched Tennessee Serves in 2019 to encourage Tennesseans to serve one another and volunteer in their communities. The three-part initiative includes serving Tennesseans across the state with a special focus on distressed counties; highlighting people and organizations already making a difference; and mobilizing Tennesseans to meet community needs.

 For more information about plans at Tennessee State Parks visit https://tnstateparks.com/get-involved/volunteering.

 For more information about the first lady’s Tennessee Serves program, please visit https://www.tn.gov/firstlady/tennessee-serves.html.