Happy Thanksgiving, Friends!

We have so much to be grateful for in 2021.  This year, we installed the demonstration garden, painted the benches, and started collecting visitor count data.  And we did all this work amid the continued pandemic public health restrictions.  None of these accomplishments would have been possible without our amazing volunteers who stepped up to help!   

We have a few more things we'd like to share this Thanksgiving week:

• Donation Drive - We did it!
• Visitor Count Update
• Titanic 110th Anniversary Update
• Calling All Sleuths! Park Benchmark

Donation Drive - We did it!

Thank you, donors! Because of your generosity, we exceeded our $5,000 goal in our Give Until it Feels Good!  campaign, raising $5,440!  As we prepare for the 110th Anniversary and major restoration of the Park, these funds put us on strong financial footing. 

We are getting closer to our $5,000 goal in our Give Until it Feels Good!  campaign.  Thanks to the people who have collectively donated $3,265 so far! Although we are a ways from our 2021 goal, we have already exceeded the donations we received in 2021. 

Fall is in the air, and we have another month with lots happening! In this issue:

• Save the Date
• Thank you, Painters
• Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge Opens
• Annual Donation Drive Update

Save the Date!

Mark your calendars now for our Titanic 110th Anniversary Gala & Tribute!  Our Gala & Tribute will be held at the Arena Stage on Saturday, April 16, 2022.  We will celebrate the future of Titanic Memorial Park and commemorate the 110th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

The National Park Service is planning a major renovation of Titanic Memorial Park in the next few years.  The Gala & Tribute will highlight those plans and ways that NPS and the Friends will work together.

Thanks to everyone who has donated in the first week of our annual donation drive!  This year's theme is Give Until it Feels Good!  Please consider a gift that leaves you feeling good about your contribution to the park's upkeep and restoration.

We raised $890 in our first week, which was doubled to $1,780 by our anonymous donor.   That is great, and if you act now, your donation can still be doubled.  We still have a way to go to meet our goal of $5,000.

It's time for our annual donation drive, and this year we want you to give until it feels good!  We know you value Titanic Memorial Park.  Please consider a gift that leaves you feeling good about your contribution to the park's upkeep and restoration.

Our goal for this year is $5,000.  An anonymous donor has pledged a dollar-for-dollar match, up to $1,000, so if you act now, your donation will be doubled!

Here's how we plan to use donated funds in 2022:

• Maintain the demonstration garden and planters.
  • We'll replace the shrubs that didn't make it in the first year in the Demonstration Garden, and add bulbs to the garden
  • We'll continue our annual planting and maintenance of the planters
• Install displays in park for the 110th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
  • In conjunction with the 110th anniversary in April 2022, we plan to have displays throughout the park that tell the stories of people who lost their lives, and those who survived, the greatest peacetime maritime disaster in the world.

Big news - we are able to paint the benches in the park!  We have that information and a few more updates:

• All Hands on Deck - Painting Party
• Mask Requirements in National Parks - Update
• Farewell to our Treasurer
• Two new ways to support the Friends

All Hands on Deck! - Painting Party

We are very excited to announce that we will have a bench painting party on:

Saturday, September 18, 2021
9:00am - 12:00 noon
Meet at the Titanic Memorial

We will paint as many benches as we can while maintaining social distance. To find more details and to sign up, visit our Events Page.  

Due to COVID restrictions, each participant must register individually for this event.  We will have protocols in place, including masking and social distancing, for everyone's safety.  Details are available on the Events Page.

August and the dog days of summer are here.  We have a just few quick updates for you this month:

• Welcome New Board Members!
• Hains Point Community Event August 14
• Volunteer Update

Welcome New Board Members!

We are pleased to announce that Beth Hall and Paddy Katzen have joined the Friends Board!  Beth and Paddy have already helped the Friends over the past year in a variety of ways, and we are happy to have them both in a more formal role.

We hope you all had a wonderful weekend celebrating Independence Day.  We have several updates for you this month:

• Volunteer Spotlight
• Reminder: Board Applications due July 16
• Coming Soon

Volunteer Spotlight

Thank you, thank you! Volunteers Stacy Baker and Brian Niemiec cleaned up the park after local July 4th celebrations.  We really appreciate the efforts of our volunteers to keep the park looking nice, even when it's not an official work party.  We have a few other volunteer opportunities continuing this summer:

Welcome to summer - we hope you all had a good Memorial Day weekend and are ready for warmer weather.  In this issue, we cover:

• June Friends Meeting
• Volunteer Update
• Friends Board News

June Friends Meeting

COVID-19 restrictions are lifting, our volunteer opportunities are increasing, and we think it's time to expand the Friends board!  With so many changes on the horizon, we want to invite you to a meeting in June share details on those topics, and also to hear from you about changes you'd like to see, and how you'd like to be involved with the Friends.  The meeting will be held via Zoom:

June 15, 2021 7:00 pm 

You must register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpcequqDMjH9eqXrJkV0mhjMqbXQJ0HThW
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

April has been a busy month!  In this issue, we cover:

• April Accomplishments
• Meetings and More
• Park Service Updates

April Accomplishments

The Demonstration Garden is planted!  Our small and mighty team of volunteers got all of the plants in place on April 17th.  You can find a few more details about the garden and plants we used on our Demonstration Garden page.

And, volunteer Melanie did us proud by painting a birdhouse with a "Flags of the Titanic" theme.  The Southwest BID is hanging birdfeeders at the Duck Pond and Lansburgh Park to celebrate Earth Day.