August 2, 2023

Dear friend of the parks,

Thanks to all who joined us in celebrating our 48th anniversary and the grand opening of our office. It was great to see so many new and long-time friends. We appreciated the smiles, energy, words of solidarity. . . and the many hands that made clean up a breeze!

We also continued to build momentum for our Matching Grant Challenge. We are almost a third of the way towards meeting our $50,000 goal! This progress brought an extra glow to the office warming. Click here to keep the momentum going with a donation today.

The FOTP Board was out in full force--check our website to match board faces to names. And we were delighted to see our former board chair, Maria Saldaña.

Another special guest was Andrea Goldberg, daughter of David Solzman. David donated all the photographs gracing our walls. It is inspiring to be surrounded by such stunning images of Chicago’s parks and people!

Speaking of inspiration, I was honored to be in the company of so many people who work in different ways to inspire, equip, and mobilize a diverse Chicago to ensure an equitable park system for a healthy Chicago. We had PAC leaders, representatives from partner organizations, engaged members, and long time donors.

After powerful opening remarks from board chair Bronwyn Nichols Lodato, guests were energized by updates on projects from across the city that Friends of the Parks is leading on.

• I shared updates on our work to mobilize support for nature-based solutions to combat lakeshore erosion. This is part of our vision to complete the Last Four Miles and make Chicago’s lakefront parks continuous across our entire shoreline.
• Elvia shared a moving story of a young student in our Nature Along the Lake program who found a deep emotional connection to the water. We are helping grow the next generation of park leaders committed to defending the lakefront.
• Adriana, who first connected with FOTP as an Earth Day volunteer, described her efforts to support PACs and activate parks, including organizing a weekly Walking Club at Steelworkers/Schafer Parks.
• Cory lifted up FOTP’s ability to catalyze democratic engagement of residents around our shared parks resources and promoted the annual DuSable Commemoration on August 19. FOTP has been part of the push to build DuSable Park from the beginning.

These short and sweet updates are just a few examples of the important work FOTP is taking on to improve Chicago's parks for all residents. And they highlight the importance of our matching grant challenge!

Sadly, our Executive Director Juanita Irizarry was unable to join us due to a sudden family emergency. She thanks everyone who lifted her mom up with prayers. Though the prognosis is still uncertain, it looks like she might be able to move into a nursing home. I hope you will join us in holding Juanita and her mom in your thoughts.

The picture above is from the week before the party. We thank all the folks who worked hard to spruce up the office, including Tony (on the right) who painted the walls our special FOTP green. We thank Revolution Brewing and Eli's Cheesecake for their generous sponsorship!

And we thank you for your support of Friends of the Parks!

With forward momentum,

Gin Kilgore

Deputy Director