High Vistas JournalThe Newsletter for Members of FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway

Because of You…

Thanks to your generous gifts this past Holiday Season, the work on

Johnson Farm that began last fall is paid for and more renovations are scheduled to begin this month! You showed your love for the Parkway and Johnson Farm by giving beyond our expectations. FRIENDS Board and staff cannot thank you enough for supporting this important work and saving a priceless Parkway treasure!

On a sunny afternoon last October, two FRIENDS staff members visited Johnson

Farm and spoke to National Park Service staff and Parkway volunteers as they worked on restorations. Penny Bryarly is one of a dedicated crew of vol-unteers who helped prep the farmhouse for new siding and paint. Asked why the restora-tion is important to her, she said, “It would just break my heart to come up here and see the condition it was in. This is our heritage.”

The siding on two sides of the farmhouse had dete-riorated beyond repair and needed a complete

replacement. The roofs were in such bad shape that Park staff worried the house and outbuildings might not survive another winter and that the farm would have to close.

Thanks to your donations, the house is newly clad in hardy Poplar siding. Poplar trees from the Parkway that were damaged or already fallen were put to use for the siding, milled

You Did It!Johnson Farm Restorations In Full Swing For 2015

March 2015Johnson Farm is saved

Page 1

“Tons of Fun” engages Kids with Nature

Page 3

Appreciation Report 2013-2014Page 4

FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway uses

your donations wisely. See how on page 4

Continued on page 2 >>

Virginia Blue Ridge Parkway Specialty License Plates are Restoring Parkway Views.

Thanks to everyone who has purchased plates for your cars, motorcycles and RVs!

Did you know? $15 of every plate sold goes directly to FRIENDS to fund Parkway projects! That equated to over $43,000 in 2014! Go to www.dmv.state.va to buy your Blue Ridge Parkway plate

today and your vehi-cle will not only look great, but will give back to FRIENDS in a big way! Live out of state; contribute matching funds so together we may double our efforts.

by a local business. White Oak trees (also naturally-felled), were split into shakes and have been curing over the winter. They will be installed this spring on the farmhouse porch roof and will be used to re-roof several of the outbuildings.

Parkway Ranger and Supervising Law Enforcement Officer, Jon Holter, takes great pride in the ongoing restora-tion work at Johnson Farm. He has devoted countless off-duty hours coordinating the project along with Greg Baltad, Retired Parkway Ranger and Chair of the FRIENDS Peaks of Otter

Chapter. Holter says the work could not be done without the help of FRIENDS, the volun-teers who contribute time and labor, and the donors who give so generously to cover the cost of renovations. Baltad puts it clearly, “Through the generos-ity of a few it has been pre-served to exist as a museum for millions.”

There is a lot of work yet to be completed on this living “mountain museum” but your gifts have given new life to the farm and hope for another century of educating and delighting millions of Parkway visitors each year.

Continued from page 1

Jon Holter greets a volunteer.

Greg Baltad in front of Johnson Farm house.

Beginning the first week-end in May, Greg Baltad, Retired Ranger and Chair

of the FRIENDS Peaks of Otter Chapter, will embark on a cross country bicycle ride to raise funds for the Parkway such as the ongoing renovations at Johnson Farm. The ride will take Greg six to eight weeks originating in Oregon and ending in Virginia on the Blue Ridge Parkway. He welcomes

anyone who’d like to ride along. FRIENDS’ own Fernando Gracia will join Greg for the final leg along the Parkway.

Stay tuned for more infor-mation about Greg’s “Ride for the Parkway.” For information about the ride or to find out how you can help Greg with his journey, please email Staff@FriendsBRP.org or visit our website, www.FriendsBRP.org.

Announcing “Ride For The Parkway”

3,382 Virginia BRP Plates On The Road

2 FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway

The Roanoke Valley FRIENDS Chapter hosted a booth at “Tons of Fun,”

an annual event that draws thousands of kids and their families for a day of fun and games. The chapter volunteers offered a number of nature-related activities such as an Enviroscape that teaches kids about storm water run-off pol-lution and prevention; a “Pin the Tail” game in which kids matched pictures of tails to the appropriate animal; rock painting; photos with Grover; and more.

Because of your donations, events like these are just one of the many ways FRIENDS is reaching our youth and encouraging them to engage in the natural world.

“National Parks like the Blue Ridge Parkway are really humbling. Just a few days ago

I was really stressed out about midterms and I was getting

caught up in the tiny trials and tribulations of everyday life.

This experience reminded me of the bigger picture and how

everything culminates in a way that is so much bigger than

yourself. ”Elon University student Darrah O’Flaherty of Denver, Colorado

Twelve students from Elon University visited the Parkway’s Peaks of

Otter area providing invalu-able support to FRIENDS and the National Park Service in the rehabilitation project of historic Johnson Farm.

In spite of chilly, rainy autumn weather, the students succeeded in painting the fence and parts of the farmhouse. They helped with the installa-tion of roofing materials, new siding and just about anything else that needed attention at the work site during their Alternative Break.

Your generous support ensures that programs like the Alternative Break remain a reality! It is critically important for FRIENDS to engage young people in stewardship of our public lands. Your contribu-tions help FRIENDS continue to provide that opportunity.

Alternative Break ProgramYour Support Gave the Johnson Farm 24 Helping Hands

ABP Volunteers work even in the rain.

FRIENDS Engages Kids In Nature!Thank You for Helping with “Tons of Fun”

Kids having Tons of Fun!

Blue Ridge Parkway by NumbersA wide variety of animal species including*

* Blue Ridge Parkway Final Management Plan Summary

Elon University Students and Greg Baltad.

Amphibians

Fish

Mammals

Birds

Reptiles

Globally rare plant and animal species

www.FriendsBRP.org 3

Brinegar Cabin Gardens

Visitors get a sense of what the garden and life might have been like for the Brinegar

family near the turn of the Twentieth Century. Northern Highlands Chapter volunteers contributed over 200 volunteer hours to bring the garden back to life after years of neglect. Check out this great video on YouTube titled: The Garden at Brinegar Cabin.

Johnson Farm farmhouse

Peaks of Otter Chapter volunteers and Elon University students provided over 800

volunteer hours to restore the Johnson Farm farmhouse. See stories on page 1 and 2 for details.

NEW FRIENDS eNEWSLETTERSubscribe to our FREE e-Newsletter and stay up to date on volunteer opportunities, ongoing projects, Parkway news and more. Visit FriendsBRP.org and sign up today.

Appreciation Report 2013-2014 Your support empowers volunteers to accomplish great work on the Parkway

Your volunteer time & donations revive cultural & historical sites

Your generous investment maintains parkway assets & engages kids in nature

Your help strengthens Parkway communities through the FRIENDS Network of Chapters

Your support is making a tremendous impact on the Blue Ridge Parkway!

Through YOUR donations, volunteer hours and support for FRIENDS programs, you help preserve and enhance the Parkway for now and for future generations.

P.O. Box 20986Roanoke, Virginia 24018

540.772.2992 | 800.228.PARK (7275)www.FriendsBRP.org | Staff@FriendsBRP.org

FRIENDS Board of DirectorsKEN RANDOLPH, President - Rockydale Quarries, CorpDAVID POTEET, Vice President - Nomad Mobile GuidesSTEVE BEYER, Vice President - Leisure Media 360J. RICHARD WELLS, Treasurer - Lesiure Media 360LYNN DAVIS, Secretary - Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources & EnvironmentPERRY KEYS, Assistant Secretary and Treasurer - Enterprise SoftwareKIM BLAIR - Ferrum CollegeMARTHA BOGLE - Nationl Park Service Superintendent, retiredWILLIAM BRENTON, JR. - The Brenton GroupKYLE EDGELL - Caricature ArtistGEORGE HUMPHRIES - Photographer and Author, Mars Hill University

FRIENDS StaffSUSAN JACKSON MILLS, PH.D, Executive DirectorMICHELE G. CRIM, Director of Marketing & Donor FundraisingFERNANDO GRACIA, Director of Programs & Community OutreachGAIL WEBB, Membership Services CoordinatorMARY ELLEN BELCHER, Administrative Assistant

FRIENDS Volunteer StaffJill Darlington-SmithKathy Van DuzerVirginia EhrichRichard Hoffman

Pam McCallisterPauline O’DellLeslie LindsayMark Lindsay

“ I volunteered to be the (Adopt-A-Cemetery) coordinator and have thoroughly enjoyed every minute. Mapping and identifying the people interred in the cemeteries is a great

way to provide visitors to our Parkway with an insight to those who lived here.”Drew Daniels, Roanoke Valley Chapter Volunteer

76%Trails

Adopted

74% Overlooks Adopted

1,746Junior Rangers

Served

31%Cemeteries

Adopted

8 x 9,528 = 102 FRIENDS Volunteer Projects Chapters Hours Completed

2,226 x 102,367 = $2,308,968 Parkway Hours of In Wage Volunteers Service Equivalency