When I was about 2 years old, my family visited Saguaro National Park in Arizona. All I remember from this trip is the stories my parents and grandparents have told me, like how I pricked my hand when I decided to touch a cactus (not my brightest moment). Since then, I’ve visited Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky, Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis and spent plenty of time at different local parks. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to truly appreciate the beauty of the world around me, especially when I think about these parks. 

Last year was a record-breaking year for America’s National Parks, with the National Parks Service reporting a record 331 million recreation visits in 2024. This is a 2% (6.36 million) increase from 2023. This positive National Parks news has been overlooked, however, amid recent mass firings of rangers and other employees at the Grand Canyon, Yosemite and other popular parks.

According to the New York Times, the Trump Administration fired about 1,000 National Park Service employees in February, a part of President Trump and Elon Musk’s plan to reduce the size of the federal workforce. 

According to Kristen Brengel, the senior vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association, these mass firings could lead to campgrounds closing, cancellations of ranger programs and restriction in the ability to conduct search and rescue activities during peak travel season. 

Given the high amount of people who visited national parks last year, this mass-firing by the Trump Administration is extremely harmful for the parks. National Park Service workers are extremely important for maintaining the parks and making sure the future generations will be able to visit this beautiful nature amid an increase of visitors.

According to the Associated Press, the park service now says it is reinstating around 5,000 seasonal jobs that were initially removed as part of a spending freeze ordered by President Trump in January. While this sounds like a step in the right direction, the implementation of more seasonal jobs does not solve the issues caused by the lack of permanent workers in the parks. Hundreds of National Parks, including some of the most-visited parks, will likely remain understaffed and struggle to continue operating as usual. 

Although it can be difficult to regularly visit national parks, going to these parks when you can is extremely beneficial. Visiting the parks increases your physical activity, increases your exposure to nature, promotes mindfulness, and provides opportunities to socialize and inspires curiosity. It is so amazing to have had the opportunity to learn about the beautiful American landscape at the national parks I’ve visited, and I hope to get this opportunity again in the future. 

Whether it’s a major national park or the local park by your neighborhood, the employees managing and cleaning up these parks are extremely important. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to experience the beautiful world around us. I urge everyone who cares about the environment and our parks to visit the National Parks Conservation Association’s website and send a message to Congress, urging our representatives to speak up about the importance of national parks. No matter your political views, I think we can all agree national parks are an incredible display of the beautiful country we live in, and should be properly protected and taken care of.

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Mady Kiser at mkiser@hilite.org.