[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 14, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





              SCOTT JONES' QUEST OF ALL 419 NATIONAL PARKS

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                         HON. RAUL M. GRIJALVA

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 14, 2020

  Mr. GRIJALVA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Scott Jones, who 
last summer completed a quest to see all 419 units of our National Park 
System, an impressive feat. Apparently, this wasn't enough for Mr. 
Jones though, who added all the National Monuments and National 
Conservation Areas managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of 
Land Management just for good measure. On August 26, 2019, Mr Jones 
became the first person to visit all 478 of the federal protected lands 
he calls our nation's Treasured Places.
  The list includes some of our most iconic and inspiring landscapes 
(such as Grand Canyon and Yellowstone), and places that serve to 
interpret some of our most important historical lessons (Gettysburg and 
the Lincoln Memorial). Mr. Jones' travels took him to both the best of 
America, and to places that help us remember the turbulent and even 
unsavory history that is part of our shared national experience. Mr. 
Jones is quick to admit that each trip was an education and his 
experiences at many sites were rich opportunities to understand more 
about himself and about the United States.
  For instance, Mr. Jones spoke to local reporters about his moving 
experience at Topeka's Brown V. Board of Education National Historic 
Site in Topeka, Kansas, which chronicles the fight to end school 
segregation. He recalled walking down a hallway lined as video of 
people yelling racial epithets played around him--mimicking the 
experience of Linda Brown on her walk to school.
  From Topeka to 477 other sites, the Treasured Places quest took 
almost 15 years and involved a lot of travel. Mr Jones started out just 
like anyone would, visiting places close to his home in Phoenix, 
Arizona, but he had to venture a bit further than most, with trips to 
interior Alaska, the Northern woods, and even the War in the Pacific 
National Historical Park in Guam, his farthest trip at over 6,500 
miles.
  Mr. Jones' quest was not just a personal whim, he used it as an 
opportunity to inspire others. Through his blog and social media, he 
invited anyone interested to follow his adventures. Each of his quests 
are designed to encourage others to ``just get out more'' at whatever 
ability and with whatever time each of us has, whether for just a day 
trip or an epic adventure. His three slogans: explore eagerly, travel 
cheaply, and adventure often.
  Many of his trips provide examples of how achievable and inexpensive 
it is to visit some of our nation's exceptional public lands. He 
completed this quest while working full-time for conservation 
nonprofits and made a point of not counting any visits that were made 
for his job toward completion of the total goal.
  But for Mr Jones, adventuring is a constant goal and his thirst for 
adventures is far from slaked. In 2016, to celebrate the 100th 
anniversary of the National Park Service, he took an epic trip to visit 
100 parks in 100 days. He examined every ``World Largest Ball of 
Twine''--all three of them--while making his way to every state in the 
U.S. In the future, he plans to climb to the highest point in every 
county in Arizona and he plans to visit 50 different countries by the 
time he turns 50.
  A proud graduate of Arizona State University, Mr. Jones is a fanatic 
supporter of ASU Sun Devil football. Ever the explorer, even this 
interest has become another quest--Mr Jones has been to 8 of the 12 
football stadiums of the PAC-12.
  Now that his personal Treasured Places quest is complete, Mr. Jones 
continues to encourage others to undertake their own quests to visit 
these places with the help of his website, treasuredplaces.us.
  Mr. Jones is an exemplary person, who transformed a personal interest 
in parks and special places into a quest that he has shared as an 
inspiring invitation. His efforts truly do encourage all of us to make 
the time and effort to ``get out there more'' and enjoy our country's 
many treasured places.

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