NATCHEZ, MS: Volunteers Mark and Marge Hoecker recently completed a two-month tour serving as volunteer interpretive guides at the Mount Locust Historic House and Plantation. The Hoeckers volunteered over 200 hours, earning them each a Centennial Volunteer Challenge Coin. For the Hoeckers, volunteering at Mount Locust offered their first opportunity to explore the Natchez Trace Parkway.
Though it was their first volunteer experience on the Parkway, the Hoeckers are no strangers to the National Park Service Volunteers-In-Parks program, having volunteered previously at Cape Lookout National Seashore in North Carolina. “Getting to meet new people, working in national parks, and talking with visitors from all over the country and the world is what really makes volunteering for the National Park Service so rewarding,” commented Marge Hoecker.
To commemorate the centennial year for the National Park Service, the agency encourages everyone to take part in the celebration. Volunteers who contribute 201.6 hours during the 2016 calendar year are eligible to earn a Centennial Volunteer Challenge coin. Potential volunteers can learn more about volunteering for the Natchez Trace Parkway at www.volunteer.gov.
The Mount Locust Historic House and Plantation near Natchez, MS is open daily; for additional information, please call (601) 445-4211 or visit www.nps.gov/natr.
