2010 Refuge Friends "Fly In" and Hill Rally
Stand UP for the National Wildlife Refuge System!
Friends, the Refuge System needs you…be a part of the 2010 NWRA Friends Fly In!
The National Wildlife Refuge System needs YOU on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, March 9, 2010! Please join the NWRA in Washington D.C. and urge your members of Congress to continue their support of the Refuge System.
We are asking that you come to Washington D.C. for the sole purpose of communicating the needs of your refuge and the Refuge System. An in-person visit from a constituent is among the most effective tools on Capitol Hill.
In the words of Norm Dicks, Chairman of the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, “The NWRA and its affiliated Friends groups are indispensable to alerting Congress to the needs of our national wildlife refuges.”
We urge you to send at least one representative from your Friends group to join others from around the nation on March 9th, culminating with a reception on Capitol Hill that evening celebrating the Friends, Volunteer, Refuge Manager and Employee of the Year.
Over the past three years, the Refuge System has received remarkable increases in funding and we must keep up this momentum. How has this happened? YOU! Friends went to Capitol Hill and urged their elected officials to support the Refuge System.
Work has already begun on the budget for Fiscal Year 2011 and the news is not good. As “Friends” you know how the Refuge System struggles and sometimes does not succeed in maintaining its operations because of diminished and inconsistent funding. We need to keep the momentum going or the gains made in the past 3 years could be jeopardized. We need you ON Capitol Hill to be a voice for wildlife and wildlands.
REGISTER TODAY!
Please click here and download the Registration Form and e-mail Joan Patterson at jpatterson@refugeassociation.org ASAP!
HOTEL
A block of rooms have been reserved at the Hyatt Regency in Bethesda, Maryland at a discounted rate of $199.00/night. The Hyatt, located just outside the District of Columbia, is easily accessible from Reagan National Airport via the subway. The hotel is located right above the Bethesda Metro Station and is approximately 45 minutes from the airport. To make your reservation at the Hyatt Bethesda go to https://resweb.passkey.com/go/NWRAhtt or call 1-888-421-1442 and refer to the National Wildlife Refuge Association.
AGENDA FOR “FLY IN”
On Monday, March 8th NWRA will be conducting a short advocacy training session giving you the tools and resources to successfully communicate your refuge and the Refuge System needs to elected officials. To accommodate your various travel schedules we will offer the training session from 4:00 to 5:30 and then again from 7:00 to 8:30pm.
On Tuesday morning, NWRA will supply a breakfast at the hotel and answer any last minute questions and then Friends will board buses from the hotel to Capitol Hill where we’ll pose for a photo on the Capitol steps. Friends will have meetings with their Congressional delegation all day and in the evening, attend the National Wildlife Refuge System Reception in the Cannon House Office Building from 6:00-8:00 pm. Buses will return Friends to the hotel following the reception and Friends will return home on Wednesday – or stick around to see the sights in D.C!
Wildlife can’t speak for themselves – join us March 9th in Washington D.C. to give them a voice!
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