Local events mark peace park's 75th year
Events this week will mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.
In 1932, Rotarians from Alberta and Montana collaborated on an initiative that helped join Waterton Lakes and Glacier national parks as a symbol of the longtime friendship between Canada and the United States.
The site became the world's first international peace park.
On Thursday, the Consulate General of Canada in Denver and the Montana Department of Commerce will co-host an event at Lake McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park.
The celebration will include afternoon presentations and a speaker panel from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., followed by an invitation-only evening reception, according to a press release from the Montana governor's office.
Honored guests will include Rotarians from Alberta, British Columbia and the Flathead Valley, park officials from Glacier and Waterton Lakes, and Montana political leaders Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger and First Lady Nancy Schweitzer.
While festivities get under way at Lake McDonald Lodge, a group of 18 fifth-graders from Montana, Alberta and British Columbia will join in an overnight educational and interpretive program at Glacier Institute Field Camp. The students were selected after entering a Peace Park Essay Contest at the end of last school year.
On Friday, Schweitzer will join the students for a journey up to Logan Pass on Glacier Park Inc. red buses. At the Logan Pass Visitor Center, they will join a delegation from Canada and Montana for a Hands across the Border ceremony.
The 10:30 a.m. ceremony will commemorate the 75th anniversary of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.
Following the ceremony, Schweitzer will lead the schoolchildren on a nature walk toward Hidden Lake Overlook from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Matt Graves, West Lakes District Interpreter for Glacier National Park, will help lead the hike along with Kelly Roth, Glacier Institute's Field Camp Program Director.
"These children are our future leaders. Celebrations like this play an important role in ensuring that tomorrow's leaders will continue to engage in the vital relationship between our two neighboring regions," Schweitzer explained. "The park is a wonderful opportunity for children on both sides of the border to experience this splendid piece of nature and share a commitment to preserving it."
In addition to commemorating the peace park anniversary, the event will highlight current transboundary partnerships in the Crown of the Continent region that surrounds Waterton-Glacier, as well as economic and social ties between the two nations.
According to a 2006 study, two-way trade between Canada and Montana totaled more than $3.6 billion and supported 16,000 Montana jobs.
"We have much to celebrate," said Consul Marc Boucher, public affairs manager at the Consulate General of Canada in Denver. "The U.S.-Canada partnership is a remarkable one. As neighbors and friends, we share a common heritage and enjoy a similar outlook. We also inhabit a continent rich in resources, people, ideas and initiatives, which all contribute to our shared prosperity."
"In addition, Canada is the United States' principal ally and a key contributor to North American trade prosperity and border security. Therefore, maintaining and supporting this unique and prosperous bilateral relationship is in the best interest of both of our countries."
On the Net:
For more information on Waterton Lakes National Park, visit the Parks Canada website at http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/waterton/index_E.asp.
For more information on Glacier National Park, visit the park's website at www.nps.gov/glac.