Dear friend of the parks,
The time is now! We can’t imagine a more opportune time to dig deep to invest toward a reimagined Chicago park system--one that centers the health and resilience of all of Chicago for now and for generations to come.
Friends of the Parks’ “Reimagine Capital Campaign” is your special chance to do just that.
In the run-up to our 45th anniversary in 2020, many of our communications and activities revolved around reflecting on where Friends of the Parks has been and where we’re going. From being there at the start of the Chicago Marathon to engaging cyclists through our LATE Ride through the parks to playing a key role in creating the Park Advisory Council system to winning the replacement of the most dilapidated playgrounds to keeping the DuSable Park dream alive to challenging affront after affront to our lakefront, the CDF pollution dump being the most recent example--there has been much to revisit and be proud of!
Through various phases of Friends of the Parks’ historic work, you have made this happen!
And then, of course, COVID-19 threw us all for a loop. So we have spent much of the last couple of years pivoting and innovating—and responding to the revelation that it has been for some: that Chicago’s amazing park system is central to our health and resilience.
Also, the pandemic closure of the lakefront along with more frequent and severe storms that are battering our lakeshore have brought heightened appreciation of and attention to the value and needs of our precious park, path, and beach resources and nature-based solutions to urgent challenges. All of this has given a renewed boost to the Last Four Miles vision that so many friends of the parks have given voice to over the years.
Plus, it has become crystal clear that there is a strong overlap between the parks that were revealed as least invested in per our 2018 State of the Parks report and the neighborhoods most impacted by the health and economic impacts of the pandemic.
So the time is ripe for our calls for park equity to become part of the equation in Chicago’s efforts to build back better: 1) by ensuring green-space sanctuaries in communities where heart disease and diabetes have made residents more susceptible to COVID-19 and where mental health outlets are so desperately needed; 2) by centering the role of parks in combatting climate change impacts in tree-deficient, urban heat island neighborhoods and communities experiencing severe stormwater impacts; 3) by making front-end investments in park programming that get kids on a positive path and contribute to neighborhood and city-wide safety.
Amidst all of this, we were working the “silent phase” of a capital campaign to bolster the next manifestations of our collective love of parks.
So today we’re excited to announce that we are at $775,000 of our $1 million goal! Amidst the pandemic, a generous anonymous donor quietly gave the campaign and the next iterations of our park watchdog work an amazing boost with a lead gift of $200,000!
While we were at this, little did any of us know that we would be approaching our goal at the same time that Chicago has been presented with the opportunity of a change in Chicago Park District leadership. We are in a moment that could lead to a much healthier era of emphasis on equity and good government and all-around healthy parks for a healthy Chicago.
Just two days after she was installed, Chicago Park District Interim Superintendent Rosa Escareño accepted our invitation to speak at our Parks as Democracy? Luncheon to share a bit about her commitment to fully investigate malfeasance and to collaborate better with community.
Your generous donation today to the Reimagine Capital Campaign will help us get off to a strong start in our relationship with her administration and in the new year.
We are already planning for an early 2022 State of the Parks Summit to revisit the benchmarks from 2018, review how far we’ve come, and reimagine how we might work in a more collaborative way with a reimagined Chicago Park District to bring to life many of the recommendations from the report.
We are counting on key friends like you imagining yourself as integral to making all of this possible. Because you are!
Our goal as we launch the public phase of the “Reimagine Capital Campaign” is to raise $150,000 in individual donations and pledges (which can be multi-year commitments) by the end of 2021! Together we can do this!
We are looking both for support to help grow our team and to build our reserves for long-term financial stability. This will help us firm up our work plan for 2022 and map out a strategy to maximize impact between now and our 50th anniversary—which will be here before we know it!
Of course, our park policy and programmatic strategies and emphases change over the years across different mayoral and park district administrations and as we engage lots of perspectives, conduct power analyses, and learn more about climate change.
As you know, it’s all variations on the same theme—protecting and promoting Chicago’s parks and lakefront for the generations. For all of us Chicagoans and the many and varied reasons that we love and need parks.
Your extra investment today will help us make the most of this special window of opportunity.
Will you join us?
We can accommodate checks and credit card donations via the enclosed envelope, on-line donations, stock transfers, and formal pledges. Please contact Abigail Johnston at [email protected] or 312-857-2757 x4 if you want a pledge form or to communicate with staff to otherwise support you in making your Reimagine Capital Campaign gift to maximize this opportunity on behalf of Chicago’s parks.
The time is now! We can’t imagine a more opportune time to dig deep to invest toward a reimagined Chicago park system--one that centers the health and resilience of all of Chicago for now and for generations to come.
Friends of the Parks’ “Reimagine Capital Campaign” is your special chance to do just that.
In the run-up to our 45th anniversary in 2020, many of our communications and activities revolved around reflecting on where Friends of the Parks has been and where we’re going. From being there at the start of the Chicago Marathon to engaging cyclists through our LATE Ride through the parks to playing a key role in creating the Park Advisory Council system to winning the replacement of the most dilapidated playgrounds to keeping the DuSable Park dream alive to challenging affront after affront to our lakefront, the CDF pollution dump being the most recent example--there has been much to revisit and be proud of!
Through various phases of Friends of the Parks’ historic work, you have made this happen!
And then, of course, COVID-19 threw us all for a loop. So we have spent much of the last couple of years pivoting and innovating—and responding to the revelation that it has been for some: that Chicago’s amazing park system is central to our health and resilience.
Also, the pandemic closure of the lakefront along with more frequent and severe storms that are battering our lakeshore have brought heightened appreciation of and attention to the value and needs of our precious park, path, and beach resources and nature-based solutions to urgent challenges. All of this has given a renewed boost to the Last Four Miles vision that so many friends of the parks have given voice to over the years.
Plus, it has become crystal clear that there is a strong overlap between the parks that were revealed as least invested in per our 2018 State of the Parks report and the neighborhoods most impacted by the health and economic impacts of the pandemic.
So the time is ripe for our calls for park equity to become part of the equation in Chicago’s efforts to build back better: 1) by ensuring green-space sanctuaries in communities where heart disease and diabetes have made residents more susceptible to COVID-19 and where mental health outlets are so desperately needed; 2) by centering the role of parks in combatting climate change impacts in tree-deficient, urban heat island neighborhoods and communities experiencing severe stormwater impacts; 3) by making front-end investments in park programming that get kids on a positive path and contribute to neighborhood and city-wide safety.
Amidst all of this, we were working the “silent phase” of a capital campaign to bolster the next manifestations of our collective love of parks.
So today we’re excited to announce that we are at $775,000 of our $1 million goal! Amidst the pandemic, a generous anonymous donor quietly gave the campaign and the next iterations of our park watchdog work an amazing boost with a lead gift of $200,000!
While we were at this, little did any of us know that we would be approaching our goal at the same time that Chicago has been presented with the opportunity of a change in Chicago Park District leadership. We are in a moment that could lead to a much healthier era of emphasis on equity and good government and all-around healthy parks for a healthy Chicago.
Just two days after she was installed, Chicago Park District Interim Superintendent Rosa Escareño accepted our invitation to speak at our Parks as Democracy? Luncheon to share a bit about her commitment to fully investigate malfeasance and to collaborate better with community.
Your generous donation today to the Reimagine Capital Campaign will help us get off to a strong start in our relationship with her administration and in the new year.
We are already planning for an early 2022 State of the Parks Summit to revisit the benchmarks from 2018, review how far we’ve come, and reimagine how we might work in a more collaborative way with a reimagined Chicago Park District to bring to life many of the recommendations from the report.
We are counting on key friends like you imagining yourself as integral to making all of this possible. Because you are!
Our goal as we launch the public phase of the “Reimagine Capital Campaign” is to raise $150,000 in individual donations and pledges (which can be multi-year commitments) by the end of 2021! Together we can do this!
We are looking both for support to help grow our team and to build our reserves for long-term financial stability. This will help us firm up our work plan for 2022 and map out a strategy to maximize impact between now and our 50th anniversary—which will be here before we know it!
Of course, our park policy and programmatic strategies and emphases change over the years across different mayoral and park district administrations and as we engage lots of perspectives, conduct power analyses, and learn more about climate change.
As you know, it’s all variations on the same theme—protecting and promoting Chicago’s parks and lakefront for the generations. For all of us Chicagoans and the many and varied reasons that we love and need parks.
Your extra investment today will help us make the most of this special window of opportunity.
Will you join us?
We can accommodate checks and credit card donations via the enclosed envelope, on-line donations, stock transfers, and formal pledges. Please contact Abigail Johnston at [email protected] or 312-857-2757 x4 if you want a pledge form or to communicate with staff to otherwise support you in making your Reimagine Capital Campaign gift to maximize this opportunity on behalf of Chicago’s parks.