Kangaroos at Noccalula Falls petting zoo get new names thanks to local students

Noccalula Falls Park, one of Gadsden’s most popular attractions, just got a two new additions—red kangaroos. Of course, one of the most fun parts of welcoming new animals to the family is naming them, and the City of Gadsden enlisted the help of 5th graders for the task.

Meet Lula + Chief

The two new residents of Noccalula Falls Park are one male and one female red kangaroo, and they’re part of the park’s petting zoo. Their names? Chief (the male) and Lula (the female).

The two 5th graders who submitted the names are John Hughes from Euro Brown Elementary (who named Chief) and Havanna Christian from Walnut Park Elementary (who named Lula).

“We are excited about this. We hope you go up and see Chief and Lula. We have informed them of their names, and they actually loved them. Right after we told them their names, they started eating again.”

Gadsden Mayor Craig Ford

According to the The Gadsden Times, John and Havanna were announced as the winners at a city council meeting on Tuesday, January 23.

More on Noccalula Falls Park

As reported by The Gadsden Times, a fire in 2021 destroyed the Noccalula Falls petting zoo barn and claimed the lives of many animals. Work began on the new petting zoo barn last summer, and Chief and Lula will be part of the revitalized petting zoo.

Noccalula Falls has a lot more new things in store, too. Recently, it was announced that the park would undergo a massive $11M renovation. Here’s the full story.

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