National Park Foundation Celebrates Corporate Support for National Parks
WASHINGTON – September marks the one-year anniversary of the launch of the Second Century Club, the National Park Foundation’s corporate membership program. Over the past year, this distinctive program has helped raise critical financial support to sustain and strengthen the National Park Service as it kicks off its second century in 2016.
“The Second Century Club helps us build and strengthen relationships between America’s national parks and its corporate advocates,” said Will Shafroth, president and CEO of the National Park Foundation. “Expanding public-private partnerships can enhance efforts to protect our parks, interpret our nation’s history, pursue new programs, and engage younger generations.”
Second Century Club members support the National Park Foundation, which helps provide our national parks with the resources needed to maintain their magnificent legacy and ensure their continued relevance for people everywhere from all backgrounds. Our corporate membership makes projects and programs like these possible:
Pullman National Monument
In 2015, President Obama established Pullman National Monument, the first national park in Chicago. This monument preserves the incredible story of the Pullman Company, the Pullman Porters, and the rise of the labor movement in America. With the support of our Second Century Club members, we are helping to revitalize historic structures, create exhibits, acquire a museum collection, and develop interpretative materials to make Pullman a world-class park experience.
Open OutDoors for Kids
Children, particularly urban, multicultural youth, are more disconnected from their natural and cultural heritage than ever before. The National Park Foundation is working to identify the barriers they face in accessing their national parks, and helping create opportunities for them to experience these incredible places. Open OutDoors for Kids is putting nature at the fingertips of today’s youth through in-person and in-classroom experiences. You can learn more about Open OutDoors for Kids at www.nationalparks.org/ook.
21st Century Conservation Service Corps
Many of our national parks are in dire need of repair and maintenance, but they lack the resources and personnel to help address the issues. The 21st Century Conservation Service Corps is a national collaborative effort to put America’s youth and returning veterans to work supporting our parks. This initiative is helping young people gain valuable training and work experience, while carrying out needed conservation and restoration work on public lands, waterways, and cultural heritage sites.
Active Trails
Our Active Trails program promotes and enhances the trails that are managed by the National Park Service, while also promoting healthy lifestyles and activities for people who visit the parks. The program gets people of all ages out and active on the trails—whether hiking, kayaking, conducting citizen science, doing yoga, snowshoeing, or volunteering to help improve existing trails or to build new ones.
Second Century Club members enhance and expand the work of the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation. As we gear up for the upcoming centennial celebration, the National Park Foundation is excited to work with many committed Second Century Club members to support parks and ensure they’re not just protected, but enriched well into the future.
The 2014-2015 Second Century Club Champion Level members are:
American Express; Budweiser; Subaru of America, Inc.; Humana; REI; Disney Worldwide Services, Inc.; The Coca-Cola Company; The Coleman Company, Inc.; Accenture; Aramark; The Boeing Company; CamelBak; Celestron; Church & Dwight, Co.; The Coca-Cola Foundation; Comcast; CSX Transportation; GE Lighting; Globus family of brands; Macy’s, Inc.; Motorola Solutions Foundation; Nicolas Holiday, Inc.; O.A.R.S.; Pendleton Woolen Mills; The REI Foundation; Safeway; Salientmg LLC; Toad & Co.; Tourism Cares; The UPS Foundation; Union Pacific Foundation; Vacation Races; and Walmart Stores.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION
The National Park Foundation is the official charity of America’s national parks and nonprofit partner to the National Park Service. Chartered by Congress in 1967, the National Park Foundation raises private funds to help PROTECT more than 84 million acres of national parks through critical conservation and preservation efforts, CONNECT all Americans with their incomparable natural landscapes, vibrant culture and rich history, and INSPIRE the next generation of park stewards. Find out more and become a part of the national park community at www.nationalparks.org.