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Category: Smile Across America

  • D.C. Neighbors Can Spend Saturday Morning Caring for Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

    D.C. Neighbors Can Spend Saturday Morning Caring for Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

    Smile Across America stop: Northeast Washington, D.C. A Saturday morning at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens can pair a walk among the ponds with a few hours of hands-on care for the park. The National Park Service lists its monthly volunteer session for Oct. 24, beginning at 9 a.m.; the free event lasts three hours and requires advance registration.

    Community volunteers and a park ranger care for a lily pond at an urban aquatic garden in autumn
    Editorial illustration.

    A garden morning with a practical purpose

    The volunteer session offers several ways to help: removing invasive plants, collecting litter, weeding flower beds, maintaining trails and other park stewardship activities. Some work may take place in shallow ponds, giving volunteers a chance to contribute across the garden’s wetland and walking areas.

    The National Park Service also works with the Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, a nonprofit partner that supports volunteer opportunities and helps keep the gardens welcoming. For this event, the Park Service says tools and supplies will be provided, including gloves, boots, waders and hand tools.

    Autumn colors frame lily ponds and a boardwalk at an aquatic garden
    Editorial illustration.

    What volunteers can expect

    Participants can plan for an outdoor morning that runs rain or shine. A water bottle, snack, hat, sun protection and a change of clothes are useful to bring; comfortable clothes and shoes that can get wet or muddy make the work easier.

    Gloved hands tend wetland plants beside a lily pond in the soft light of an autumn morning
    Editorial illustration.

    Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens is at 1550 Anacostia Avenue NE in Washington. The Oct. 24 session begins at 9 a.m.; advance registration is required because space is limited. Check the National Park Service event page for details and registration, and the Park Service’s volunteer page for more ways to support the gardens.

  • Logan Wall Finds a New Career Chapter at Anniston Army Depot

    Logan Wall Finds a New Career Chapter at Anniston Army Depot

    For Logan Wall, a career transition brought his skills back to a familiar part of Alabama. After seven years in the U.S. Air Force, he used a SkillBridge internship at Anniston Army Depot to train for civilian security work—and became the depot’s first SkillBridge intern to move into a civilian position there.

    Editorial illustration of two coworkers welcoming a new colleague at a depot entrance in warm Alabama daylight
    Editorial illustration of a new career chapter taking shape at a depot entrance.

    A path back to Alabama

    Wall grew up a little more than an hour from Anniston. While exploring SkillBridge locations, he focused on Alabama and found an opportunity at the depot. He had served as an Air Force air transportation specialist for seven years, traveling to 16 countries, and wanted his next role to offer a familiar structure.

    “I wanted a job that was structured like the military,” Wall told Army writer Pachari Middleton.

    Learning the job, then stepping into it

    At the depot’s Directorate of Emergency Services, Wall trained for a security position at the entrance. Deputy director Johnnie Whitehead said the team created a training plan to prepare interns for that work. After separating from the Air Force, Wall applied for a civilian position with the department and joined the staff.

    Editorial illustration of coworkers reviewing a blank access card and checklist during hands-on workplace training
    Editorial illustration of practical training shared between coworkers.

    Wall said the internship helped him build experience and familiarity with the job before returning to the depot in a civilian role. His supervisor, Lt. Casey Hilderbrand, described the program as a useful way to match transitioning service members with civilian positions.

    Experience that carries forward

    SkillBridge gives service members nearing the end of active duty time to gain real-world experience with civilian employers and federal installations. At Anniston, Wall’s internship led to a hiring opportunity close to the Alabama community he wanted to return to.

    Editorial illustration of a person walking along a leafy Alabama town street toward a new workday
    Editorial illustration of returning to a familiar region for a new chapter.

    Wall’s story joins professional experience with a local next step: training in a new role, a successful move into civilian work, and a chance to serve near home.

    Source: U.S. Army: Anniston Army Depot welcomes first SkillBridge hire. DVIDS report and photo records.

  • Smile Across America: 1,585 Neighbors Gather at Nisqually Watershed Festival

    Smile Across America: 1,585 Neighbors Gather at Nisqually Watershed Festival

    Smile Across America: On Sept. 26, a day of bagpipes, hands-on nature activities and good company brought an estimated 1,585 people to the Nisqually Watershed Festival near Olympia, Washington.

    The annual gathering filled Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge with neighbors exploring the river basin they share. Refuge visitor services manager Julia Pinnix gave the estimate in a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recap published Oct. 2. This was the gathering’s 37th year.

    Editorial illustration of neighbors exploring a riverside nature festival beneath autumn trees
    Editorial illustration of a community gathering beside a river.

    A welcome that carried across the watershed

    The day opened with bagpipes and a blessing from the Nisqually Canoe Family, then moved into a full schedule of music, learning and family activities. The Nisqually River Council’s festival program listed the Olympia Highlanders, the Nisqually Indian Tribe Canoe Family, local musicians, nature walks, and a K–5 poster contest themed around the watershed’s native birds.

    Children could climb inside FIN, a 25-foot model salmon, make fish prints on T-shirts and decorate windsocks and bird-beak masks. At exhibit tables, local groups invited visitors into conversations about water quality, native plants, wildlife and the river’s health. The Nisqually River Council also highlighted salmon and shark anatomy programs, a Reptile Man appearance and an afternoon falconry presentation.

    Editorial illustration of volunteers welcoming families from a shuttle at a riverside festival
    Editorial illustration of a shuttle bringing neighbors to a community event.

    Four buses helped neighbors reach the celebration

    Getting to the festival was part of the community effort. Organizers hired four school buses to carry visitors from Hawks Prairie Park and Ride to the refuge. In the amphitheater, about 130 people at a time gathered for salmon and dogfish shark dissections. Families also browsed the visitor center, local nature books and food stands, with live music from Olympia band Vendredi’s Bag providing a soundtrack through lunch.

    The welcome was made possible by a broad host committee that included the Nisqually Indian Tribe, Tacoma Power, the Nisqually River Council and River Foundation, the Nisqually River Education Project, Nisqually Reach Nature Center, Friends of Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Complex and the refuge itself. At least 70 volunteers helped the event run smoothly, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

    Editorial illustration of a family learning about river fish and insects with a volunteer naturalist
    Editorial illustration of families discovering the watershed’s wildlife.

    For a festival built around a watershed, the day offered a friendly reminder that a river connects more than places: it links people, wildlife, plants and the work of caring for a shared home. The 38th Nisqually Watershed Festival is scheduled for Sept. 25, 2027. Those who would like to help can contact the refuge at [email protected].

    Sources: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s post-event report and the Nisqually River Council’s 2026 festival page and schedule.

  • Smokies Families Celebrate the Rebuilt John Messer Barn

    Smokies Families Celebrate the Rebuilt John Messer Barn

    Smile Across America takes a warm minivan route through real communities and the people who care for them. Today’s stop is Greenbrier, where relatives of the Messer family joined park and preservation partners to celebrate a Smokies landmark’s new chapter.

    On September 28, descendants of the Greenbrier community gathered with Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Friends of the Smokies for a ribbon-cutting at the rebuilt John Messer Barn. Family members shared stories of parents and grandparents who lived on the property before the national park was established.

    Editorial illustration of descendants and park stewards celebrating beside a cantilever barn in autumn
    Editorial illustration of a community gathering beside a historic barn.

    The gathering marked the completion of a full reconstruction of the barn in the Greenbrier area. The partnership brought together park leadership, Friends of the Smokies, descendants, and donors around a simple idea: keep a place connected to local family history ready to welcome future generations.

    A familiar landmark, carefully renewed

    The barn is the oldest structure in Greenbrier and the only building in that area that predates the national park, according to the National Park Service. Its distinctive double-cantilever form is associated with East Tennessee, and the structure is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

    Preservation work carried the barn’s familiar details forward. The reconstruction used traditional techniques and materials similar to the original construction, including wooden studs in place of nails, and carefully preserved and reused the barn’s original doors.

    Editorial illustration of craftspeople fitting timber logs and preserving wooden doors during barn restoration
    Editorial illustration highlighting traditional timber work and preserved doors.

    Friends of the Smokies supported the project through its Forever Places endowment, which helps care for historic structures across the park. The organization described the reconstruction as a $465,000 investment in keeping this piece of Smokies history part of the mountains for generations.

    Family stories belong here, too

    The ceremony gave descendants of the Messer family a chance to share memories of the people who once lived on the property. That living connection adds another layer to the barn’s history: the beams and doors tell one story, while family recollections bring forward the everyday lives that shaped the Greenbrier community.

    Editorial illustration of multiple generations sharing family stories beside a Smokies barn
    Editorial illustration of relatives sharing memories at a family landmark.

    For visitors, the barn sits about a mile up Porters Creek Trail. The National Park Service describes it as a historic landmark and a waypoint for hikers. The reconstruction keeps that meeting of place and memory visible—a mountain trail leading to a structure built by local hands and carried into the future by a wider community.

    In Greenbrier, a ribbon-cutting became a welcome across generations: descendants remembering the people who came before, partners caring for the landscape today, and future hikers arriving to meet a piece of Smokies history along the trail.

    Sources

  • Volunteer Guides Made a Fishing Day Special for 26 Veterans in Kentucky

    Volunteer Guides Made a Fishing Day Special for 26 Veterans in Kentucky

    Twenty-six veterans began their day before sunrise on Sept. 10, heading out on Lake Cumberland with volunteer fishing guides for a celebration built around good company, time on the water and a shared catch.

    The 13th annual fishing event was organized by Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says participants met at 5 a.m. for a striper-fishing trip. The guides donated both their time and expenses, helping make the lake outing possible.

    Editorial illustration of a small fishing boat on a sunlit Kentucky lake
    Editorial illustration: an early-morning fishing trip on a Kentucky lake.

    After several keepers came aboard, the group returned for a catered meal, gift bags and commemorative T-shirts provided by Friends of Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery, Inc. Lora Walters, a member of the Friends group, prepared the meal, according to the agency’s account.

    A DAV Honor Guard performed a patriotic ceremony after lunch. The day then continued at Hatchery Creek, where the veterans were invited to fish for trout in the freshly stocked water.

    Editorial illustration of fishing rods beside a dock on Lake Cumberland
    Editorial illustration: fishing gear ready beside a quiet lake.

    Seven guide services took part: Laker Guide Service, MegaBite Charters, Jerry Sasser Fishing, Taylor’s Guide Service, Stars and Stripers Guide Service, StriperKing Guide Service and Kentucky Guide Service. The hatchery credited its guides, volunteers and sponsors with making its fall events possible.

    Editorial illustration of a welcoming picnic beside a shaded hatchery creek
    Editorial illustration: a shared meal near a flowing creek.

    The gathering brought several kinds of welcome together in one day: volunteer guides on the lake, a meal prepared by a community supporter, a ceremony of thanks and another chance to cast a line at the hatchery. It is a lasting example of local partners using their time and skills to create a memorable outdoor celebration for veterans.

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s event recap includes the full list of volunteer guides and more photographs.

  • Oxon Hill Farm’s Fall Festival Makes Room for Every Neighbor

    Oxon Hill Farm’s Fall Festival Makes Room for Every Neighbor

    On October 17, Oxon Hill Farm will open its gates for a free fall festival built around a simple community pleasure: spending an autumn day together at a working historic farm.

    From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Oxon Cove Park & Oxon Hill Farm in Maryland will host music, pumpkin painting, a community showcase and sheepdog demonstrations. The National Park Service says the program welcomes families, neighbors and visitors to celebrate the season through hands-on activities and shared time outdoors.

    A pasture full of teamwork

    One of the day’s liveliest moments will be the sheepdog demonstrations led by AJ Hesketh-Tutton. Visitors can watch trained dogs guide sheep through the pasture in response to voice and whistle commands, a close look at the trust and coordination behind a traditional farm skill.

    Editorial illustration of a sheepdog handler guiding a border collie and sheep through a sunny autumn pasture as a family watches.
    Editorial illustration: a sheepdog demonstration brings a farm skill into view.

    The schedule also includes a morning performance from teaching artist Groovy Nate and an afternoon set from The Tribe Band. Throughout the day, local organizations will share their missions in a community showcase, giving visitors an easy way to meet people doing useful work nearby.

    A welcome designed for more neighbors

    The details of the festival carry the same friendly spirit as the activities. The park plans American Sign Language interpretation for performances and makes interpreters available to accompany visitors on request. Braille brochures will be available in the visitor center, and staff and volunteers can arrange golf-cart assistance for people with mobility concerns.

    The festival also offers a free shuttle between Oxon Hill Farm and the Oxon Hill Park and Ride. Bicycle racks, nearby transit connections and a walk from the Park and Ride give visitors several ways to arrive.

    Editorial illustration of multigenerational neighbors including a wheelchair user painting pumpkins together at a historic farm courtyard in autumn.
    Editorial illustration: neighbors turn a fall craft table into a shared afternoon.

    A Smile Across America stop

    For this Smile Across America stop, the joy is in the thoughtful mix: a pasture demonstration, live music, a small creative project and room for local groups to welcome their neighbors. It is a fall gathering with enough choices for people to make the day their own.

    Oxon Hill Farm is at 6411 Oxon Hill Road in Oxon Hill, Maryland. The National Park Service asks visitors to check its festival page for the current schedule and arrival details.

    Source

    National Park Service: Oxon Hill Farm Fall Festival

  • A Denver-Area Refuge Day Opens a Warm Door to Wildlife

    A Denver-Area Refuge Day Opens a Warm Door to Wildlife

    Smile Across America is a warm road-trip look at the people and places that make communities brighter.

    Just northeast of Denver, Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge set aside a Saturday for the kind of curiosity that makes a family outing memorable. Its September 26 Refuge Day program invited people of all ages to explore wildlife, try hands-on activities, and spend time together outdoors.

    The visitor-center program included wildlife activity tables, arts and crafts, face painting, and an archery activity. The refuge also planned up-close encounters with black-footed ferrets and hawks, creating a chance for visitors to see familiar conservation stories with new eyes.

    Editorial illustration of neighbors gathering at a wildlife-refuge trailhead on a sunny autumn day
    Editorial illustration

    A welcoming wildlife stop near the city

    Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is a natural neighbor to the Denver metro area, about 10 miles northeast of downtown Denver. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service describes the refuge as a place where visitors can encounter bison, deer, raptors, songbirds, waterfowl, prairie dogs, coyotes, and other wildlife.

    Refuge Day’s program gave that rich setting a friendly family rhythm. Activity tables make room for questions. Crafts and face painting add a little color to the day. Archery gives visitors a chance to try something together. The program’s structure welcomed a wide range of ages, from children meeting a wildlife professional to adults who have been meaning to make a first visit.

    Editorial illustration of families discovering native flowers beside a sunny wildlife-refuge path
    Editorial illustration

    Small discoveries add up

    A wildlife refuge can offer a fine change of pace: a place to notice the sweep of a prairie, look up for a raptor, and learn why native habitats matter. Events such as Refuge Day make the invitation especially easy. Families can arrive for an activity and leave with a new favorite bird, a fresh question about conservation, or a plan to return for a trail.

    The black-footed ferret is one example of the stories that can make a close encounter meaningful. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists the species among its conservation work, and a respectful educational encounter helps connect visitors with the care that goes into protecting wildlife and habitats.

    For Smile Across America, this is a cheerful Denver-area stop on the map: a Saturday at a refuge where nature learning, hands-on play, and community time shared the same welcome. The program paired outdoor recreation with the simple pleasure of noticing who else calls a landscape home.

    Editorial illustration of neighbors enjoying conversation together in a sunny public landscape
    Editorial illustration

    Planning a future refuge visit

    Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is free to visit, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge’s visitor center and programs offer an approachable starting point for anyone who wants to see more of the prairie and the wildlife that lives there. A return trip can be as simple as a walk, a wildlife watch, or another chance to bring a young naturalist along.

    Across the country, community events at refuges help public lands feel close to home. Rocky Mountain Arsenal’s Refuge Day offered a reminder that a few hours of activities can open a door to a much larger landscape.

    Sources: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Refuge Day; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Black-footed Ferret.

  • Vermont’s Forest Festival Welcomes Families for a Day of Woodcraft and Music

    Vermont’s Forest Festival Welcomes Families for a Day of Woodcraft and Music

    Editorial illustration

    Woodstock, Vermont, has a full day of forest-centered community activities on Saturday, September 26. Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park’s free Forest Festival brings visitors together for carriage rides, woodcraft, music, demonstrations, and hands-on learning in and around the Mount Tom Forest.

    The National Park Service lists the festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the park. Families can ride between activity stations in horse-drawn carriages from Billings Farm & Museum, explore the Junior Ranger Hub, and meet artists-in-residence Allison Cook and Shawn Dumont.

    Adult and child hands shaping wood at an outdoor autumn craft table.
    Editorial illustration

    A day that follows wood from forest to craft

    At the Pony Pasture, the festival schedule includes a portable sawmill demonstration by F&F Millworks, horse-logging demonstrations, and a chance to learn about local forest practices from community organizations. Visitors can also see woodcraft demonstrations and meet featured artisans near the Carriage Barn Visitor Center.

    For younger visitors and their grown-ups, the Junior Ranger Hub offers tree identification, a Mount Tom Forest-inspired bookmark activity, plant-pressing inspired by historic herbaria, and artist demonstrations. The park also plans a display of a recently conserved historic carriage at the Woodbarn Exhibit.

    Families watching a portable sawmill demonstration in an autumn forest setting.
    Editorial illustration

    Music and shared time outdoors

    Live music is scheduled throughout the day in the Pony Pasture. Tim and Toben Traver will play Irish traditional and New England contra-dance music in the morning. Dartmouth student Joe Hagerty follows at noon, and Vermont Folklife’s youth trad ensemble Sugar in the Pan is set to close the afternoon with music from several regional traditions.

    The Forest Festival combines practical skills, local knowledge, and time together outdoors. Visitors can bring a picnic and chairs or blankets for the music, while the park asks guests to use the Billings Farm & Museum parking area and follow the paved approach or event shuttle to the festival.

    Details, directions, and the complete activity schedule are available from Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park. The National Park Service event listing confirms the September 26 date, free admission, and festival hours.

  • Smile Across America: Camp Nelson Invites Neighbors to Care for a Historic Kentucky Landscape

    Smile Across America: Camp Nelson Invites Neighbors to Care for a Historic Kentucky Landscape

    Smile Across America: A Saturday morning in Kentucky will give neighbors a hands-on way to care for a historic landscape and enjoy time together outdoors.

    On September 26, Camp Nelson National Monument will welcome volunteers for National Public Lands Day. From 9:30 a.m. to noon, participants will work with National Park Service staff to remove downed vegetation at Fort Jones, a preserved earthwork within the park’s historic landscape near Nicholasville.

    The gathering has the simple rhythm of a good community morning: meet at the visitor center, travel together to the work area, take a short walk, and lend a hand. The National Park Service says gloves and tools will be available, while volunteers are encouraged to bring water and dress for time outside.

    A shared task in a meaningful place

    Fort Jones is part of the defenses that supported Camp Nelson during the Civil War. The monument’s broader history includes the soldiers, civilians and refugees whose lives passed through this Kentucky site, and its programs connect that history with the people who care for the landscape today.

    For the September workday, volunteers will meet park staff at the visitor center, follow a vehicle caravan to parking along Sugar Creek Road, and hike about a quarter mile to Fort Jones. Working gloves and tools will be provided, and the National Park Service recommends long sleeves, pants, water and sunscreen for the morning outdoors.

    That combination of a practical chore and a local story is the heart of National Public Lands Day. The National Park Service describes the annual observance as a time that brings people together around green space, stewardship, learning and recreation. At Camp Nelson, those ideas will unfold at a site where the ground itself carries history.

    More ways to gather at Camp Nelson

    The volunteer day is part of Camp Nelson’s summer-and-fall schedule, which includes family archaeology activities, talks, hikes and new programs connected to the monument’s From Camp to Community project. The project highlights the stories of Camp Nelson’s soldiers, civilians and refugees in communities across Kentucky and beyond.

    Those programs make room for different kinds of participation: a child discovering an artifact activity, a neighbor joining a guided walk, a family taking in a history program, or a volunteer helping care for a place that invites future visitors to learn. The park’s History & Culture resources offer a useful introduction for anyone planning a visit.

    The road-trip takeaway

    Smile Across America is always looking for the small acts that keep a community welcoming. At Camp Nelson, that act comes with sturdy shoes, a water bottle and a few hours set aside for a shared landscape. The result will be a tidier path into a remarkable Kentucky story and a bright example of neighbors making room for one another outdoors.

    Editorial illustrations accompanying this story depict the spirit of volunteer stewardship.

    Sources: National Park Service event details for Camp Nelson’s National Public Lands Day and its History & Culture overview.

  • Columbia’s Airport Filled With a Welcome Home for Veterans

    Columbia’s Airport Filled With a Welcome Home for Veterans

    The arrivals hall at Columbia Metropolitan Airport became a place of welcome on September 12. Families, volunteers, neighbors and Soldiers from the 81st Readiness Division gathered as Korean War and Vietnam War veterans returned from the Central Savannah River Area’s first Honor Flight.

    The journey began before sunrise. At about 5 a.m., Soldiers and volunteers helped stage wheelchairs and supported check-in for the veterans. The flight left Columbia around 7:30 a.m. for Washington, D.C., where the group visited memorials dedicated to their service and that of fellow service members.

    A welcome shaped by a whole community

    When the veterans returned to Columbia at about 8 p.m., the airport was ready to greet them. Soldiers stood at attention and saluted as families, Honor Flight volunteers and community members welcomed the travelers home. Some veterans returned the salute, creating a memorable exchange between those who had served and the neighbors who came to honor them.

    Editorial illustration of volunteers helping older travelers prepare for an airport departure
    Editorial illustration: volunteers lend a hand as travelers prepare for a shared journey.

    For 1st Sgt. Travis Blackwelder of the 81st Readiness Division, seeing Soldiers render honors to the returning veterans was one of the trip’s highlights, according to the division’s report. The report said the homecoming reminded Vietnam veteran Senior Master Sgt. Joseph A. Rampino that his service was remembered; Rampino described the moment as overwhelming.

    A day built around recognition

    The Honor Flight program brings veterans to Washington to visit memorials connected to their service. The Central Savannah River Area chapter’s first flight gave Korean War and Vietnam War veterans a day of travel, reflection and recognition, with volunteers helping at both ends of the trip.

    Editorial illustration of an older veteran and family member sharing a quiet moment in a memorial garden
    Editorial illustration: a veteran and family member pause together in a peaceful memorial garden.

    The 81st Readiness Division reported that the chapter had a second Honor Flight scheduled for May 2027. The Sept. 12 homecoming showed the community care threaded through the first trip: practical help before departure, a journey to the nation’s capital, and a gathering at the airport to say welcome home.

    Editorial illustration of veterans meeting family and neighbors in an airport arrivals hall
    Editorial illustration: family and neighbors welcome veterans at an airport arrivals hall.

    Read the 81st Readiness Division’s account of the Honor Flight homecoming for the full event details. The story was reported by Master Sgt. Jessica Littlejohn.

    Images: Editorial illustrations created for Smile.news.

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