Scribd Logo
Hochladen

Willkommen bei Scribd!

  • Rec and Parks Magazine On SF RPD

    Hochgeladen von

    Dolores Park Works
    15 Ansichten6 Seiten
    In 2008, Karen Kidwell became executive director of the San Francisco parks trust. In her role as head of a parks citizen group, Kidwell says it's important to have patience. It's crucial in these times of crisis for parks to move ahead with fundraising and advocacy.

    Originalbeschreibung:

    Originaltitel

    Rec and Parks Magazine on SF RPD

    Copyright

    © Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)

    Verfügbare Formate

    PDF, TXT oder online auf Scribd lesen

    Stufen Sie dieses Dokument als nützlich ein?

    Sind diese Inhalte unangemessen?

    Dieses Dokument melden
    In 2008, Karen Kidwell became executive director of the San Francisco parks trust. In her role as head of a parks citizen group, Kidwell says it's important to have patience. It's crucial in these times of crisis for parks to move ahead with fundraising and advocacy.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Als PDF, TXT herunterladen oder online auf Scribd lesen
    Markieren Sie unangemessene Inhalte
    15 Ansichten6 Seiten

    Rec and Parks Magazine On SF RPD

    Hochgeladen von

    Dolores Park Works
    In 2008, Karen Kidwell became executive director of the San Francisco parks trust. In her role as head of a parks citizen group, Kidwell says it's important to have patience. It's crucial in these times of crisis for parks to move ahead with fundraising and advocacy.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Als PDF, TXT herunterladen oder online auf Scribd lesen
    Markieren Sie unangemessene Inhalte
    von 6
    malaga \ ¥ No longer just Cero RCS tta Ceca cect r Evie PiM tele ceMu Us aratts| Roem re eco e cet Cres seek mec tas mcr tese SRS Rasen se Cerone tors, and write grants. Some incorporate Cem etecsuti ac curhos Ck operate with little formal structure. Most eects tse tricone asc caee while a notable few are fueled by ce- essgrca a macomasac] Grete ona heer at buries SSR ccc cU Cie tems cece! staggering array of services, and they peter sek ecscnicpenicheceriat epasrcrere race Cert tngenace eer erred Indeed Or penned cena Francisco Parks Trust, See eed Francisco Recreation and een) ee Papen Exhilarating, Exciting, Exhausting FOLLOWING CAREER STINTS in the for-profit field of finance on the east and west coasts, Karen Kidwell transitioned into nonprofits early in the last decade, fulfilling a per- sonal commitment to work in the philanthropic world. Kidwell got ‘her start with nonprofit organiza- tions by serving seven years on the ‘Board of Directors of the Committee {for Green Foothills. She was a trust ‘oc of Earthshare of California, and is currently a trustee of the Green. Foothills Foundation. Having expe- lenced firsthand the importance Peer of parks in both New York's and San Francisco's urban settings, she she ‘came to deeply appreciate the need for green open spaces. “Parks simply ‘make life in San Francisco better,” she says. In 2008, Kidwell became exeou- tive director of the San Francisco Parks Trust (SFPT). Below, Kidwell disouss- ‘esher role as head of a parks citizen group. ‘The same thing that makes leading a parks organization easy also makes it dif- ‘ficult. The people who step forward are engaged and passionate often considering park tobe almost their personal property. That enthusiasm and energy mean that ‘they will worchard and dedicate themselves toa park or greening cause. Lots ofpeo- pleare very generous with helrtime and funds in suppor of parks—they understand ‘theirimportance and care alot, so that maker my job easy. However, ot all users of parks agree on usage, policies tc, soit's possible to have passionate disagreements about our parks and those disagreements can be hard to mediate. In addition othe “must have" skills/qualities of being organized, stening well, ‘possessing high energy and enthusiasm and balancing the interests of all, it's impor. tant to havea bias to action tempered by patience. I's crucial in these tines of crisis {for parks to move ahead with fundraising and advocacy, and to push and push hard. ‘However, some things don't yield fo pushing inthe short run, 01's important to know ‘whon fo pull back and lot things resolve themselves or return when the situation has setled down ait ‘Right now I'm spending at east 40 percent of my time on development and fund- ‘raising various types and working with staff and consultants on campaigns to bring funds directly tothe rec centers and pazks, with our GearUp and reStore campaigns (equipment for rec centers and gardeners, xerpectively), a capital campaign for trails, and fundraising for SEPT. After that, about 30 percent of my time is spent on ‘programs and organizational management, including work with our 60 patk part- ‘ner groups. The balance is spent working on advocacy and issues with our RPD col- leagues and trustees, communicating withthe public and our members and going to ‘meetings on park/rec issues. ‘This is an exhilarating and rewarding job, and it canbe exhausting, too. The eco- nomic crunch has made it even more difficult. It's easy feel overwhelmed, sol sug- ‘gest that anyone inthis position seta clear set of goals and priorities to ensure that you actually accomplish something tangible, Your partners, staf, and hoard of trustees ‘must know the goalsand embrace them. Every day there is anew crisis and another seat Idea that you could tackle. But sometimes you have to tay no, ox no for now” ‘to;ensure that you can deliver on what you have promised. 48 Parks A Recreation JANUARY 201) WwW.NRPA.ORS Friends groups have been around ig time; many date to the 1970s when suburban spraw fist 98 began to encroach upon beloved na ‘ure preserves, historo sites, and park. lane TYP al coalesce around such eriaes a8 dove ‘opment threats or budget cuts. Alter mceeselully contzonting the evisis, the citizens would thea cantinve to function ler" group to enhance pro (grams and improve facilities, paradigm has tuts and 9, a citizens group: ‘expanded into areas that former fl wholly under the juris ‘employees. Moreover, frien groupe increasingly serve in the role of prov! ing the funciing necessary to keep the objects of their eauses going. As Karen Kidwell, president of tae San Francisco Parks Trast, explains, “Whereas oar lo cal park friends groups used to supply toppings for the susdae, they are now Ironically, even as the need for vol unter groups skyrockets, the elimina- tioa of volunteer coordinator positions created new challenges for many ager cies seeking to harness its citizen re sources as well as for etizena seeking to serve the agencies. One resul of this loss of park staff leadership has been the expanded roles of gro Kidwell's—umbrella organizati that serve essentially as friends of the spe nach as friends groups ‘The ingredients that make for sue ‘cessful partnerships between parks and citizen volunteers are just as a verse as the needs those partnerships fil. Interviews with agencies and ci zon groups ac: 6 the eouatry point ome of effective partnership: a clear, well defined cit 2en group mission that responds dir iy and specifically o the most pressing needs of the park(s) it sup onally, once the mission is is the day-to-day process of building ‘mutually respectful relationships and ‘rast between park and volunteer lea ‘ership that determines the ultimate suc ‘cess and duration of that partnership, Repeatedly, park directors and ve eran volunteer leaders voice the same conclusion: wherever a cea, relation ship-based mission guides the work, the joint venture betwe parks and their citizen supporters can become a sshaced adventure in community enc reat, That adventure inciudes valuable ts and growtk opportunities for Several small, park-specifc friends groups can be mobilized into one lange, effective advocacy or fundrais- ing group. "We called them the Green eam,” saye Bill Becker, NRPAVS r fax County referringto coalitions of naivicual volunteer groups. "Park friends groups in Fairfax County dich’ form forthe par pote of av suumbers, we could go to those fiends jer andthe former diac rc Authority in Vir But when we needed aul Wolf, prosident of Friends for the Preservation of Ohio State Parks, notes the esse with which brella organization can unite to in- uence state legislation. Ho eites the group's 2008 mnccess in lobbying the ‘at would have slashed state pare batdgeta by 10 percent Jane Hodgkinson, director of the ‘Weston DaPage Special creation As sociation in Tino, adda thatthe very 1akes its unified appeals to lawmak- rs particularly compelling. "When ‘our special recreation volu ccoactied and given talking points, their et ators are pretty unto Citizen groups have access to ze- sources and funding options that governmentagencies do not. Thou rules vary from one slate or locality to the next, the simple fact is that private table. The Delicate Dance of Give and Take “I9°S DANCE, a constant give and take,” says San Francisco Recreation and Patk ‘Department General Manager Phil Ginsburg, commenting on the nature of his agen- ‘y's partnership with citizen volunteer organizations, “and, like any longcterm rela- ‘onahip, it requires commitment’ Ginsburg does the dance skillfully, according to colleague Karen Kidwell ‘president ofthe San Francisco Parks Trust (SEPT). Unlike many programs where ‘volunteers typically are “coordinated” by park staff, Ginsburg encourages a thor. ‘ough-going parinership model, actively seeking a peer-to-peer relationship with San Francisco's park-+upporting private ‘groups. For Ginsburg, who has held his post since 2009, this philosophy is about surviv- al—about exercising the stewardship nec- essary fo preserve an infrastructure that ‘cannot be sustained solely through public funds. "We are Sghting for our parks,” he says. "A city parks department can no lon- ‘ger meet theneedio provide clean, safe, fun parks by itself.” ‘What does that peer relationship look like in practice? In the case of the SEPT, Ginsburg regularly attends board meet. ings, strives for daily communication, ‘takes care in provtizing his department's er) ‘requests for sapport, and submits toa high ‘degree offinancial accountability before the group's leadership. “We wantthem to know, tyou support this program or fanction, the money willbe spent wisely," he says. ‘And it is critical that that trust be in place—becanse the kinds offanding support ‘San Francisco's parks department needs mort right now isa tough sell o most do- nors, “Weare able o build new facilities,” Ginsburg says, “but our operations budget {sa disaster.” Considering that most donors can see the value of tangible equipment and facilites much more easily han that of maintenance crews or font desk staff {ng citizen volunteer leaders need more than sheer fundraising savvy: They mut be able to Inspire confidence in donors fo requests that have not typically been made inthe past. “Karen has been able to inspire that confidence,” Ginsburg says with admiration. Indeed, Kidwell andthe members ofthe SFPT have, over the past two years, es: {ablished a stellar track recordin both communicating the needs ofthe parks depart. ‘mont and delivering on its funding promises. Ginsburg and Kidwell have the added esponsibility of remaining sensitivetocon- ‘coms many San Franciscans have about public-private partnerships. Inatime ofev- ‘ex-deeper budget cuts, Ginsburg explains, where “we are duking tout over whether {ofilla pothole or planta tree,” the citys parks department continues to aim for robu ‘programming and well maintained facilities, Fulfilling that mission requires

    Das könnte Ihnen auch gefallen