Local woman inspires national parks guidebook
Four years ago, when Emily and Daniel Matheny traveled with their 9month-old daughter Jane to Joshua Tree National Park in California, they had a wonderful time but felt something was missing.
“We didn’t think there were too many child-friendly options, like collecting stamps for the park,” said Emily Matheny, 33. “So I thought, why don’t I just make one of my own.”
With her mother, Mary O’hare, as cowriter, and her aunt, Rose Storey, as illustrator, the trio put together “Stamp Your Way Through the U.S.A.,” a guidebook series for ages 5 to 10 that highlights all 63 national parks.
Included are maps, park features, a section for children to interview park rangers and a place for a stamp for each park. There is a book for each of five geographical regions in the United States, as well as a book that covers them all.
Published in 2019, the series recently won a gold medal in the activity book/educational category from Moonbeam Awards, annual citations
sponsored by an independent publishing company.
Matheny, who lives in Grandview Heights with her husband and now, three children — Emmett, 2, and baby Celeste was born Feb. 12 — has been to 25 of the national parks. Her children (except Celeste) have been to seven.
“My favorite park is Grand Teton,” she said. “There’s so much to do — biking, kayaking, hiking and lots of scenery, mountains, lakes, rivers.
“Parks that appeal most to children depend on the child’s interest. In the Everglades, you can see such different wildlife — crocs and birds — and out West, you find bears, elks and caribou.”
Having a guidebook created for them appeals to children, she said, because “children love keepsakes and treasure. The national parks are a goal, and kids like goal-oriented things.”
Even in COVID-19 times, Matheny said, her guidebook is becoming relevant again as the parks, if not their visitor centers, are reopening to the public.
“People are interested in being outdoors where it’s safer,” she said.
Matheny is now thinking ahead to her next project, a book about the National
Park Service’s historical sites and monuments, of which there are more than 400.
negilson@gmail.com