Nine grants awarded to strengthen park and trail groups around the state
Parks & Trails New York awarded nine capacity building grants to not-for-profit park and trail organizations to aid them in their efforts to increase organizational visibility and generate community support, grow membership, and attract additional volunteers.
Parks & Trails New York recognizes that active and engaged park and trail organizations contribute greatly to New York’s parks and trails, raising significant funds and logging hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours. Made possible by a generous private donor, Parks & Trails New York’s capacity building grants are designed to strengthen the state’s not-for-profit park and trail organizations, enabling them to leverage more private funding and marshal more volunteer power to better fill the gaps in government spending created by challenging economic times.
Awards were granted to:
- Brooklyn Greenway Initiative, Brooklyn, Kings County – $2,250 for design and printing of a membership brochure, website upgrades and member database support
- Friends of Grimes Glen, Naples, Ontario County - $2150 for website hosting and graphic design and printing of a membership brochure
- Friends of Kinderhook Trails, Kinderhook, Columbia County - $1900 for website development and individual and business membership materials
- Friends of Rockland Lake and Hook Mountain, Inc., Valley Cottage, Rockland County - $1500 for membership brochure development and a web and mail member solicitation campaign
- Owasco Flats Nature Reserve – Moravia, Cayuga County - $1500 for graphic design of a logo and newsletter template and newsletter printing
- Friends of Taconic State Park, Copake Falls, Columbia County - $1425 for a marketing and membership consultant and membership materials
- Erie-Cattaraugus Rail Trail, Inc., Orchard Park, Erie and Cattaraugus Counties – $1300 for design, production and distribution of membership materials and volunteer recruitment and training
- Friends of Connetquot, Oakdale, Suffolk County - $1200 for a membership brochure and development of a tabletop display
- Association for Conservation of Recreational and Natural Spaces, Inc., Stafford, Genesee County - $650 for a membership recruitment brochure and banner
Parks & Trails New York received 55 applications from organizations located in 30 counties throughout the state. This is the second year that Parks & Trails New York has offered this funding assistance.
About the Grants
Parks & Trails New York’s Capacity Building Grants program for park and trail groups provided grants of up to $3,000 to strengthen not-for-profit organizations that are working to build and protect parks and trails in communities across the state.
Through the grant program, made possible by a generous donor, Parks & Trails New York intends to help New York not-for-profits better fulfill their missions; improve their reach, effectiveness, and impact; leverage more resources, and increase community support for and involvement in park and trail planning, development, and stewardship. Funds can be used to assist with activities associated with organizational start-up and development; training; communications; and volunteer recruitment and management.
While a number of grant programs are available to not-for-profits, they usually only fund capital projects and specific programs; they don’t help organizations develop and strengthen the skills, processes, and resources that they need to survive and thrive.
Hundreds of not-for-profit organizations are working to build, protect, and promote our state’s parks and trails, helping to provide not only places to engage in healthy physical activity and close to home recreation at a time of record gas prices but also additional tourist dollars to strengthen local economies. It’s amazing how much these groups accomplish with minimal resources and limited or non-existent staff. With this grant program, Parks & Trails New York hopes to propel their work to new levels and expand what they can accomplish so that they can become even stronger park and trail stewards and advocates.
Progress made in each of the eight communities that recieved capacity grants in 2009 to strengthen park and trail groups
In January of 2009, Parks & Trails New York awarded eight Capacity Building Grants to provide not-for-profit park and trail organizations with the tools and expertise they need to survive and thrive in these challenging economic times. Funds are being used to increase organizational visibility and generate community support, grow membership, and attract additional volunteers. In only six months since the awards, great things are happening in the eight organizations awarded Parks & Trails New York capacity building grants. Each group has used the funding to bolster a variety of outreach efforts designed to deliver their message to a wider audience and enlist members and volunteers to support them in their work.
Friends of Robert Moses State Park Nature Center, Massena, St. Lawrence County - $2770 –fundraising initiatives and website and electronic newsletter design. UPDATE 9/09: The Friends of the Robert Moses State Park Nature Center have distributed more than 500 member and community surveys to teachers, disability groups, senior organizations, the Akwesasne Mohawk community, local officials and Chambers of Commerce. The surveys will help determine what the community thinks is truly needed at the Nature Center and identify potential donors. The Friends of the Robert Moses State Park Nature Center have hired a consultant and are on their way to adding afundraising section to their website.
Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx - $2500 – five community forums for residents to help define park projects and programming. UPDATE 9/09: The Friends of Van Cortlandt Park organized a series of five community forums in the neighborhoods surrounding their New York City park. The main objective of the forum series was to hear concerns and gather suggestions for projects or programs that residents would like to see in the park, but recruitment of volunteers was a corollary benefit. The group is now asking forum participants and visitors to their website to vote for their favorite ideas and top concerns in order help them decide what to do first.
Friends of Glimmerglass State Park, Cooperstown, Otsego County - $2400- marketing strategic plan and outreach materials. UPDATE 9/09: The Friends of Glimmerglass State Park has used its funds very efficiently to enhance its programming and promotion efforts. The group created a tabletop display that has made it possible for them to showcase their activities and solicit memberships at community events. With the projector and indoor and outdoor screens that they also purchased, the group has hosted a series of free public programs, which have provided opportunities for membership recruitment.
Hudson Valley Rail Trail Association, Highland, Ulster County - $2240 – web site redevelopment. UPDATE 9/09: The Hudson Valley Rail Trail Accociation has hired a consultant and are in the midst of developing a new website.
Friends of the Rail Trail, Delmar, Albany County - $2000 –membership/project information brochure for a newly-formed group. UPDATE 9/09: Friends of the Rail Trail (FORT) received $1200 in donations as a result of a fundraising letter sent to 850 individuals who had signed a petition in support of a new trail and by distributing brochures at community meetings and tabling events.
Trail Works, Inc. Williamson, Wayne County - $1850 –public programming and creation of presentations and displays for each of the county’s 15 towns. UPDATE 9/09: Trail Works, Inc. created a power point program highlighting its activities that has already been presented in public programs conducted in 11 of the county's 13 libraries and for several Scout and civic groups. They also used their grant funds to produce and distribute display posters and membership brochures throughout the county. Results have been impressive: the group's membership has grown by 142 percent.
Hoosic River Watershed Association, Hoosick Falls, Rensselaer County - $880 – design and construction of a website for the Hoosic River Greenway. UPDATE 9/09: The Hoosic Watershed Accociation has hired a consultant and is well on their way to developing a website for the Greenway.
Friends of Great Bear Recreation Area, Fulton, Oswego County - $360 - printing of an informational and membership brochure. UPDATE 9/09: As a result of an initial printing of 400 brochures, Friends of Great Bear Recreation Area have already attracted several new trail adopters and a $500 donation from the local fire department.
In the next six months the eight awardees will continue to engage in capacity building activities aided by the Parks & Trails New York grant. Groups will bring new or revised websites on line, engage in additional membership recruitment, finalize fundraising and marketing plans, and continue community outreach.
For the 2009 year program Parks & Trails New York received 76 applications from organizations located in 41 counties throughout the state. A generous private donor made it possible for us to offer this type of assistance which no other grant program provides.
Read about the results of PTNY's capacity building grants.
29 Elk Street * Albany, NY 12207 * (ph) 518-434-1583 * (fax) 518-427-0067 * ptny@ptny.org