Volunteers make school field trips to Missions possible, despite government shutdown

Thanks to a group of volunteers, hundreds of local fourth and seventh graders were given a tour through Mission San Jose despite the ongoing government shutdown.

Mission San Jose is one of the many federal parks that have been closed since the shutdown, furloughing the park rangers who run the site.

Deborah Lund of the Professional Tour Guide Association of San Antonio said the tours are typically, “scheduled in advance and the Conservation Society of San Antonio pays for these trips.”

She said that the tours are usually conducted by the park rangers as well.

Through coordination between the Arch Diocese of San Antonio, the Professional Tour Guide Association of San Antonio and the Conservation Society of San Antonio, students were able to continue to learn about Texas history during t