Arch & Old Courthouse Announce Commitment to ParkRx
ST. LOUIS|Jefferson National Expansion Memorial is proud to announce its commitment to Park Prescriptions, or Park Rx, a growing national movement in which doctors from across the U.S. are encouraging their patients to visit their local parks in an effort to promote health and wellness practices.
Park Rx was founded on the idea that parks can be gateways to good health – providing fun, accessible places to engage in physical activity, as well as relax and enjoy time with family and friends. Park Rx goes hand-in-hand with National Park Service’s “Healthy Parks, Healthy People” program, which reframes the role of parks and public lands as an emerging, powerful health promotion strategy.
“With brand-new trails and bike paths weaving through the Gateway Arch park grounds, Jefferson National Expansion Memorial is full of ways that people can improve their physical, spiritual and emotional well-being,” says Rhonda Schier, Chief, Museum Services and Interpretation, Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. “It is important for visitors to realize that the national park experience in Downtown St. Louis extends far beyond the walls of the Gateway Arch and Old Courthouse. In reality, it encompasses nearly 91 acres of park lands, where they can enjoy a bike ride or a simple ‘walk in the park’ in an urban park setting.”
Jefferson National Expansion Memorial will join other St. Louis institutions at the St. Louis Earth Day Festival at the Muny Grounds in Forest Park, Saturday, April 22 and Sunday, April 23 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. National Park Service rangers will be on hand at the event to talk with visitors about the Park Rx program, and encourage them to get outside and visit the revitalized Gateway Arch park grounds, which recently celebrated its grand re-opening. Medical students from St. Louis University will also join the Park Service in talking with visitors about the health benefits of our local parks.
For more information about Park Rx, visit http://parkrx.org.