Everyone who attended Smokey’s birthday recieved a hug and had lots of fun.
August 9th, 2013
By Kimberly Lilly – AmeriCorps VISTA
69 years ago Smokey Bear was rescued from a forest fire in New Mexico. The forest fire was a result of an unattended camp fire. Since that fire, which destroyed his home, Smokey has been promoting fire safety and prevention.
In honor of Smokey’s hard work with fire prevention, the Shawnee National Forest team hosted a birthday celebration. Children and adults of all ages gathered to meet Smokey. Those who attended and walked within reach of Smokey received hugs of gratitude.
This was my first time meeting Smokey, and it was a blast hanging out with him. We ate lots of cake, candy and cookies. The children and I had fun playing with the balloons and watching the video on fire prevention staring Smokey himself. I also noticed that many of the adults couldn’t help but smile when they saw the icon of fire prevention himself. It was even funny to see this big bear hold a little baby. This was a celebration worth being at!
shawneeoutdoors 