2025 Micro-Grant Recipients Celebrate the 33rd Annual National Trails Day®
American Hiking Society’s 2025 micro-grant recipients organized meaningful events for underrepresented communities to celebrate the 33rd annual National Trails Day®.
We’re thrilled to share and celebrate the stories from these events, organized for underrepresented communities in outdoor spaces to engage in meaningful stewardship work and enjoy time spent outdoors.
If you’re not already familiar, American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day® Micro-Grant program is designed to reduce barriers for underrepresented communities to participate in meaningful events celebrating National Trails Day®. (Learn more about the micro-grant here.)
Keep reading to see how this year’s recipients celebrated the trails, and community, in celebration of American Hiking’s 33rd annual National Trails Day®!
The Texas Neurofibromatosis Foundation
Neurofibromatosis (NF) is a rare genetic condition that causes tumors to grow on and around nerve endings, along the central nervous system, and on and under the skin. NF is a disorder that is very isolating, and this event was a wonderful way for the NF community in the Austin area to gather together, enjoy the beautiful trails in the park and nature, and meet others who share similar health experiences. It was a wonderful morning!
The Texas Neurofibromatosis Foundation’s National Trails Day® event was held from 9:30am-12:00pm at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas. Over 20 attendees of all ages joined the celebration! Every attendee received a swag bag that included a variety of items; an event t-shirt, snacks, water, electrolyte drinks, lip balm, Dude wipes, and many other donated items.
A variety of activities were offered, including decorating fans, coloring sheets, coloring leafs cut outs, and a guided nature walk focusing on native Texas plants and flowers.
Attendees were free to venture off and explore the gardens and trails on their own. Everyone came back to the tent around Noon to collect more donated swag and say good bye.
The City of Olympia Parks Stewardship Program, Committee on Diversity and Equity, and Oly QT
The City of Olympia Parks Stewardship Program, Committee on Diversity and Equity, and Oly QT, hosted their first National Trails Day® Stewardship PRIDE Event to give the LGBTQIA+ community an opportunity to share their passion for environmental restoration. They spent a beautiful sunny day together removing English ivy, Himalayan blackberry, and English holly from trails, then spread wood chips from the fallen trees their arborists removed.
The lovely animal that arrived to show support is Ollie, the Douglas squirrel. They are indigenous to Western Washington.
Their National Trails Day® event brought together 68 volunteers and 4 tabling partners, PFLAG, Free Mom Hugs, Capitol Land Trust, and YMCA who donated 206 hours to this wonderful community. The City of Olympia Mayor, Dontae Payne, kicked off the event with a beautiful welcoming message. The group of volunteers removed around 12 yards of harmful non-indigenous plant material, such as English ivy, Morning glory, and Himalayan blackberry.
The event organizer shared, “many people say it was a great healing space and very rewarding to be amongst caring community members while engaging with environmental restoration.”
The Kewa Teens Reaching Unity Through Harmony Youth Council in Partnership with Santo Domingo Pueblo Tribal Programs
The Kewa TRUTH Youth Council, in collaboration with the Education and Employment & Training Office and the Kewa Keres Language Program, spent Saturday, June 7th immersed in nature to celebrate National Trails Day® at the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument.
For many of their youth, this was their first visit to the monument, and it was truly special. The group enjoyed a day filled with hiking, strengthening their connection with the land and each other, and giving back through a service project.
Check out their fantastic tees, made by CoatOfColors, with a custom National Trails Day® design created for them by Wyld Stylin Art.
The group shared, “This experience was more than just a hike; it was about learning, growing, and appreciating the beauty and history of our ancestral lands.”
