Grayson Subaru recently presented a check for $46,732 to Ijams Nature Center to continue its work to expand the Ijams Nature Playscape at Grayson Subaru Preserve and improve the Mead’s Quarry Lake swim area.
Grayson chose Ijams as its hometown charity for Subaru of America Inc.’s 2024 Subaru Share the Love event. From November 15, 2024, to January 2, 2025, Subaru and its retailers donated a minimum of $300 for every new Subaru vehicle purchased or leased at participating retailers nationwide to several national charities and a hometown charity chosen by each retailer.
“We are very proud to partner with Ijams Nature Center and give back to our community,” Subaru sales manager JC Marquardt said. “Ninety percent of our customers who purchased or leased a new vehicle from Grayson Subaru selected Ijams to receive the donation as part of the 2024 Subaru Share the Love event. We truly appreciate our customers for supporting us and the nature center.”
Nationally, Subaru said the 2024 event sent more than $23 million to 834 hometown charities. In 2024, Grayson Subaru presented Ijams with a $39,000 check.
Amber Parker, Ijams president and CEO, was grateful for the support.
“As a nonprofit, Ijams primarily relies on donations and memberships. These funds will help us create new play elements and add signage to the nature playscape, as well as increase the docking at the lake. These improvements are an expensive undertaking; just one interlocking dock piece costs about $10,000.”
Parker said the Ijams staff and volunteers have removed almost all of the invasive species from the upper section of the Grayson Subaru Preserve, now allowing staff to see the “bones” of the space and determine how to lay out the new play “rooms” and community science areas.
“After that work has been done, we’ll focus on lake improvements,” Parker said.
The 2024 Subaru Share the Love event raised a record $31.7 million for national and hometown charities. Over the past 18 years, Subaru and its participating retailers have donated nearly $320 million to charity.
Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025, Ijams Nature Center is a 318-acre nonprofit educational center in the heart of Knoxville and serves visitors of all ages, stages and abilities. Ijams features 14 miles of hiking and mixed-use trails, a public access river dock, swimming, boating, biking and more. Hundreds of world-class educational programs and events are coordinated and offered annually. Ijams’ grounds and trails are open every day from 8 a.m. until dusk. Info: visit Ijams.org or call 865-577-4717.
Ijams provided information and quotes for this report.
New restrooms at Songbird Trail

TVA has installed restrooms at the Songbird Trail near Norris Dam. (Photo from TVA)
At a brief ribbon-cutting event on July 10, officials celebrated the recent installation of new public restrooms at the Songbird Trail near Norris Dam.
The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Songbird Trail State Wildlife Observation Area is one of the most popular and heavily used trails on TVA-managed public lands, according to a news release from the utility. The trail is described as relatively flat with a wide gravel path that makes it accessible and enjoyable for a diverse range of users, including hikers, bird watchers, anglers, seniors and families.
The newly constructed restrooms offer improved comfort and convenience for the thousands of recreational users who visit the Norris Dam Reservation annually. The location is 2121 Norris Freeway, Norris.
Keep Knoxville Beautiful holds Lonsdale workdays

Keep Knoxville Beautiful prepares to plant at Lonsdale Elementary (Photo from KKB website)
The campus of Lonsdale Elementary School is looking spiffy after Keep Knoxville Beautiful (KKB) volunteers gave two workdays to beautify the school grounds.
SchoolScapes, a signature project of KKB, transforms uninspired or weedy areas into beautiful green spaces filled with trees, shrubs and perennials chosen for their sustainable and low-maintenance qualities, creating an environment where students and school staff feel cared for and ready to learn and teach.
Lonsdale was the fifth local school to enjoy the project, others being Beaumont Magnet, Belle Morris, Christenberry and Inskip. Trees and plants were provided by Trees Knoxville and Earthadelic.
On April 22, KKB hosted the first workday at Lonsdale Elementary to clear and prepare the landscape for planting. Some 25 volunteers collected 15 pounds of litter across one mile and removed weeds and invasive plants from the garden beds. The team returned in June for the plantings.
Update on Rappelling for the Rivers (as of July 10, 2025)
The folks at Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful have raised $3,720, or 4% of the $100,000 goal. This is the first major fundraiser for the group and the event is Saturday, August 2, 2025, at The Park Vista, A DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, 705 Cherokee Orchard Rd., Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Join Kathleen Gibi in going “over the edge” with a $1,000 donation. Sign up and get the details here.
Notes and Quotes
Wild Blue Yonder in free concert at The Cove at Concord Park, Saturday, August 9, 2025, 6-8 p.m. This is part of the concert series sponsored by Knox County Parks & Rec on each second Saturday during the summer.
Public swimming pools: The city of Knoxville operates two public pools with $5 admission – Ed Cothren Pool and Inskip Pool. Get details here. Or call Inskip Pool at 865-687-9919 and Ed Cothren Pool at 865-544-7840. (These numbers may also be called for pool closings related to weather.)
Outdoor Knoxville events calendar: Sponsored by Legacy Parks Foundation and compiled by Elle Colquitt has hikes, races and more for this week and next. Check it out here.
Best Bet: Fish of the Lower French Broad – Sunday, July 20, 9 a.m., Seven Islands State Birding Park. Cost $6. Info: 715-630-6848. Learn about river habitats, the dangers affecting the survival of some species and the conservation efforts to help protect them. We’ll hike to the bridge and Newman’s Island to find fish to observe. Register online.