Welcome back to the Sunday Stills Photo Challenge! I’ve missed engaging with you all while I’ve taken this abbreviated break. Thank you for hanging in there with me while we said our final goodbyes to my father in Arizona. I’ll share a few thoughts toward the end of this post.
Visit a Community Park
We’re kicking off “June is Great Outdoors Month” for the entire month of June. Each week, there will be sub-challenges related to celebrating the great outdoors. This week, we’re looking at the various types of community and public parks found in local neighborhoods.
In the US, local taxes and special levies pay for neighborhood parks. Amenities range from playgrounds to wedding and event venues, aquatic facilities, wildlife sanctuaries, and public gardens.
We spent most of May 2025 in the Fountain Hills area of Arizona. The picture showcases the park’s beauty when the fountain lifts off every hour. This is the 4th largest freshwater fountain in the world, which sprays as high as 560 feet.
The Fountain Hills community also boasts its Centennial Pavilion, which includes a Planetarium, a library, and shaded gathering spaces. The 8-foot-tall Arizona State Donor Puzzle memorial plaque was recently constructed. We bought a piece to honor my dad, and it was added a few days before his memorial service.
Some of our family stopped by the night before the service to see it.
You can also take a look at the variety of state and local parks in this 2024 post.
“In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson
A Final Goodbye
Weeks of planning and emotions went into our design of Dad’s service. Planning a service is like planning a wedding. So. Many. Details.
Because he was a Navy veteran, the Funeral Home arranged an Honor Guard. It was a moving service, made even more poignant when the Navy officers marched in at the beginning of the service, carrying the flag to TAPS. Then they presented the flag to my step-mom. Not a dry eye in the room.
Although we had a small gathering of 25 family members there, God’s spirit was felt in every message and prayer.
“Dad, Mom, and later Linda, laid the foundation of our their leisure legacy with their desire to explore the outdoors, experience camping, fishing, and hiking, visit national parks, and simply spend time as a family.” – Terri Webster Schrandt
Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders
The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post. Please use your own original images, whether new or from your archives.
- Remember to title your blog post a little differently from mine.
- Please create a new post for the theme or link to a recent one.
- Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
- Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
- Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
- I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.
Sharing for Brian’s Last on the Card, Dawn’s Spring Festival, and Johnbo’s Cellpic Sunday.
“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” – John Muir
For my southern hemisphere friends who are enjoying winter, I know you have many ways to enjoy the outdoors this time of year. Tell us more, or show us your favorite summer outdoor places.
Creativity is encouraged, so if you participate in the photo challenges, please share your own photographs (old or new), poems, original short stories, and music inspired by the theme.
June 1 Kicking off June is National Outdoors Month with PARKS
June 8 Monthly Color Challenge: Anything Pink
June 15 Paths and Trails
June 22 Sunrises and Sunsets, celebrating the Solstice
June 29 Patriotic–Show us your country’s flag, images of flags
I can’t wait to see how you interpret this week’s theme! Join me next week as we explore more of the great outdoors…in PINK!
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