Go vote here now! http://www.sustainabletourismawards.com
Hello, we are looking for assistance from other Civil War sites and organizations in the following effort. Please help by simply forwarding this to your email list or posting on your message boards. Your help is greatly appreciated!!! Fort Delaware located on Pea Patch Island, just off shore of Delaware City, DE is poised to put the state of Delaware - and it's historical role in the Civil War - not just on the map, but on the GLOBE. The Travelers Conservation Foundation, in conjunction with Smithsonian Magazine, has formed a worldwide award called the Sustainable Tourism Award. This award highlights preservation and conservation programs from all over the globe that have increased awareness and tourism by either protecting natural resources or preserving important historical sites. Nominations for the award are given by individuals or organizations that are willing to fill out an application, provide documentation of both "before" and "after" results, as well as write extensive anecdotal arguments as to why the award is deserved. This year, Janet Wurtzel at the Delaware Tourism Office nominated Fort Delaware State Park for this honor. The judges, which include high ranking officials from tourism, preservation, and corporate entities worldwide, then choose 3 finalists from each of the two categories. The finalists for preservation and for conservation awards are then placed on a website for the general public to view and vote. The top vote getting attraction from each category then wins a $20,000 cash award along with bragging rights and a great PR campaign. The public awareness alone is worth more than the cash award, with international attention being given to the winning attractions. Fort Delaware has MADE IT to the final 3 in the preservation category!!!! The full list of finalists include a black town preservation site in Oklahoma, the Salvatores Preservation Site in Cape May New Jersey, a birding habitat in South Africa, a Natural Reserve in Brazil, and a reclamation project in Kenya. It is an interesting side note that in an international competition, Fort Delaware finds itself competing with another attraction that is within 100 miles of here. Staff at the Tourism office, as well as at the State Parks and Recreation office are getting the word out to everyone that even though Delaware is small, our Fort Delaware attraction is worth big votes. For over 20 years, restoration at the Fort has been extensive, and the award winning living history programs that are offered there rival any seen at other similiar venues. The history is "hands on" and visitors are encouraged to get up close and personal to the artifacts available there. Everything - from the stoves to the cannon to the blacksmith's forge all are in working order and used as part of the living history demonstrations. Also, each living history intepreter at the Fort is intepreting a real person from the Fort. If a prisoner tells you his name is John Smith and he's from Alabama - it's because John Smith from Alabama was a prisoner at Fort Delaware in the 1860's. Attention to detail is a trademark of the Fort and it's programs, and that is what the park's staff feels makes it so worthy of this award. Preservation at it's finest not only preserves an historical idea - but when done properly can actually bring history to life. You can help get the word out about this amazing opportunity for Delaware and for Fort Delaware State Park. We need as many people as possible to log on to the website (www.sustainabletourismawards.com) and vote for Fort Delaware. This is a chance to highlight a crown jewel (and TOO well kept a secret) in our state as well as to generate votes and hopefully help us win this award. THANKS IN ADVANCE FOR ALL OF YOUR HELP!! Helen Haughey Marketing Director Delaware Division of Parks & Recreation (302) 739-4413 www.destateparks.com
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