Secretary Ward checked High Bridge Trail off her list!

High Bridge Trail State Park was honored to host the Secretary of Natural Resources Molly Ward on May 20, 2015, as she approached the completion of her journey to visit all 36 of the Virginia State Parks.

 Park Manager Reinhardt Gray gave the Secretary a little history lesson of High Bridge

High Bridge Trail State Park made 35 of 36 State Parks visited by Secretary Ward, before ultimately finishing at Twin Lakes State Park. The Park Manager took Secretary Ward on a tour of the park and expressed some of the ideas and concerns we have for the park in the near future. It always feels good to know that your thoughts are being heard and something is being done. As many know, it takes a lot to operate a park successfully, and to have the opportunity to share our thoughts with Secretary Ward was greatly appreciated by all.

Local stakeholders and Friends of High Bridge Trail members attended a meet and greet luncheon at the Farmville Train Station

As the Secretary entered the Farmville Train Station for lunch, she was greeted with much enthusiasm from park staff, local officials, and community leaders. During this time, all who wished to ask questions or make statements were able to do so. The Secretary was excited to hear from all of the individuals who spoke very highly of High Bridge Trail State Park and Virginia State Parks as a whole.

Secretary Ward addressed everyone during lunch to express her appreciation
for everyone who came out

Of course, our wonderful Friends of High Bridge Trail group came out to join us and local officials to show their support for the park and meet Secretary Ward

Since High Bridge Trail State Park is nearly 31 miles long, we run through numerous cities. Therefore, we often work together with the businesses and local officials within those cities. It was great to have some individuals from each of those cities to come out and express their thoughts of how the trail has been beneficial to them. There were at least 12 people who came out to represent their town and meet the Secretary.

For more information on the Secretary of Natural Resources Molly Ward, click here and to see a map of all 36 Virginia State Parks, click here.