Flotilla - June 24, 2004

Arkansas River Trail Flotilla - A Grand Success!

On June 24th, 2004, the Headwaters Partnership for the Arkansas River Trail hosted a grand "Flotilla" designed to give guests a peek at the scenic beauty of the river corridor and the numerous attractions which will be connected by the completed trail.

Approximately 300 community leaders, physicians, and trail supporters, including White House Fellow, Dr. Michael Suk, Mr. Tom Ross, Assistant Director, Recreation and Conservation, for the National Park Service, and Lieutenant Governor Winthrop Paul Rockefeller, joined guests to tour the river from Murray Lock and Dam west to near Pinnacle Mountain and then East to downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock.

In keeping with the "Triple Bottom Line" theme of the partnership, guests were served "Salad on a Stick" by costumed Vegetables created by the Five-A-Day Nutrition Coalition from the Arkansas Department of Health, provided information regarding conservation and watchable wildlife projects developed through the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission and the Arkansas Department of Tourism, as well as, treated to tourist attraction exhibits presented by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the cities of Little Rock, North Little Rock, and Pulaski County.

Special guest speakers, Dr. Suk and Mr. Tom Ross, lauded the Arkansas River Trail project and the Headwaters Partnership for its innovation, lengthly list of accomplishments, and its "first of a kind" marriage between public health and outdoor recreation.

Members of the "Medical Mile" Fundraising team, Dr. Rob Lambert, Dr. Eleanor Kennedy, Dr. Lynn Davis, and Marcia Atkinson, CEO of Heart Clinic Arkansas, were congratulated for raising approximately $622,000 in trail pledges during the first six months of the fundraising program.

Many thanks to event sponsors, including Diamond Bear Brewery, Southwest Designs, Macaroni Grill, and Channel 7, KATV, who provided decorations, food, beverages, and television coverage for the event.