Pictured: Ruby’s Inn located in Bryce Canyon City, Utah

Ruby’s Inn, situated just outside Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, recently announced that over the past 13 years over $700,000 has been raised for the historical national park through its “Dollar Check-Off” program.

Guests at each of Ruby’s Inn’s three hotels are given the option to donate $1 for each night of their stay, which goes directly to the Bryce Canyon National History Association. Last year alone, Ruby’s Inn and its guests raised $75,286.

Founded in 1916, Ruby’s Inn has been a fixture in the community surrounding Bryce Canyon and currently offers the closest lodging to the park with everything from luxury hotels to RV parks and campgrounds.

“The dollar donation program is a valuable resource to Bryce Canyon National Park by filling funding shortfalls that have become an annual reality for the National Park Service,” Gayle L. Pollock, CEO and director for the Bryce Canyon Natural History Association, said.

Started in 2004 as a way to raise money for several essential improvements, including fixing parts of the famous Navajo Loop trail, the program continues to grow with a 98 percent participation rate among guests, and an estimated 118,000 participants in 2016. Donations also support educational events, printing of educational materials about the park’s natural and cultural resources for visitors and field trips for area school children, preservation of historic photos, documents and records, paleontology research and wildlife studies, among other activities.

“The funds have been utilized to enhance the visitor experience at Bryce Canyon,” Pollock said. “Funds have been expended for free publications and the popular, “I Hiked the Hoodoos” program. Equipment for search and rescue events and a visitor comfort station were purchased with the funding as well.”

“My family and I wouldn’t be where we are today without Bryce Canyon National Park,” Lance Syrett, general manager of Ruby’s Inn said. “My ancestors didn’t plan to start a hotel, but they ended up opening Ruby’s Inn so everyone could experience Bryce Canyon’s beauty. This is the reason why we do the dollar program today, to help preserve Bryce Canyon for all visitors.”

For more information on Ruby’s Inn visit RubysInn.com.

To learn more about Bryce Canyon National Park visit www.nps.gov/brca.