(KFVS) - Gov. Jay Nixon has proclaimed May 18 as National Kids to Parks Day in the state and encouraged Missourians of all ages to get outside and enjoy our state and local parks.

This national event is sponsored by the National Park Trust and endorsed by Missouri State Parks.

“Whether visiting a local municipal park or one of our state parks and historic sites, the opportunities for enjoying nature are nearly endless,” Gov. Nixon said. “Participating in activities at our parks, from hiking to fishing, create meaningful family memories that contribute to a life-long appreciation of the outdoors.”

Gov. Nixon created the Children in Nature Challenge to encourage activities that introduce children to nature year round. Communities and families can participate in the challenge and learn more at childreninnature.mo.gov.

KELSO, MO (KFVS) - Students at Saint Augustine School in Kelso have thousands of reasons to be thankful and they know it.

That is becuase they took time to write down the reasons.

Thiry-seven students documented 1,000 reason to be grateful.

The reasons to be thankful include God's healing power, a friend that has your back and even Duck Dynasty.

"It helps you like think about what's important, not like the big things but the smaller things," said eighth grader McKenna Heisserer.

"It'll make them more thankful for what they do have and how some people don't have what they have and make them appreciate what they do have," said eighth grader Caleb Vetter.

Teacher Pat Hindman says the reasons were easy to come by at first, but after a few months students had to search for reasons and that opened their eyes.

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The 5KFVS Run/Walk is coming up! It will be May 18 in downtown Cape Girardeau, Mo.

This year, to celebrate the 5th year, we're adding a 12K!

Have you ran the 5KFVS, or even ran all five years? We want to see your photos from past events!

Send your photos to cNews@kfvs12.com or click here to upload them. Don't forget to include your name and where you're from.

We'll share the pictures online and possibly on-air!

Have you signed up yet? You can click here to visit the 5KFVS website where you can find more information and the sign-up form for this year's race.

You can see the pictures we have so far by clicking here to see the slideshow.