Friends of the Smokies, an organization whose mission is to preserve the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, announced Wednesday that it was among the top nine most-voted-for parks in a recent campaign in honor of the National Park Service’s Centennial.  The Partners in Preservation: National Parks campaign is a joining of forces between the National Trust for Historic Preservation, National Geographic, and American Express to unlock $2 Million in Grants toward historic sites at national parks across the country.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park spokeswoman Dana Soehn said “We are grateful for this opportunity which not only resulted in securing much-needed funds, but also provided a great chance to share this unique feature of our park with so many people”