North Texas family wins state parks photo contest

AUSTIN (KXAN) – A north Texas family of four has extra to celebrate this holiday season.

Sam Holm, his wife and two daughters were the winners of the grand prize for the Texas State Parks photo contest, Texas Parks and Wildlife announced Tuesday.

Holm and his family won a Texas State Parks Pass, a $500 gift card from H-E-B donated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation and a VIP curated experience in a Texas state park, TPWD said.

According to TPWD, the family’s idea for their award-winning action shot at Palo Duro Canyon came after they took a similar jumping pose at Enchanted Rock.

Holm said the family got the photograph at Palo Duro Canyon in one take.

Texas State Parks Photo Contest 1st Round Honorable Mention and Grand Prize Winner selected by public vote. Submitted by Sam Holm at Palo Duro Canyon State Park (Courtesy: Texas State Parks)

The year-long contest, part of the department’s celebration of 100 years of Texas State Parks, got more than 6,000 entries, TPWD said. A panel of judges chose four seasonal winners and runners-up, which were then entered into a public vote to select the grand prize winner.

“We are so grateful to everyone who entered the photo contest,” said Whitney Bishop, TPWD social media coordinator to KXAN in a statement. “There are thousands of special moments happening every day at Texas state parks and we feel privileged to be a part of that.”

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