The Anchorage Park Foundation

The Anchorage Park Foundation is a unique public-private partnership that supports the park system in Anchorage. The city donates the staff time, a volunteer board of directors oversees the activities, and the public contributes to the fund at The Alaska Community Foundation.

The ACF manages the funds and over the last few years, more than $17 million in cash, in-kind donations and volunteer hours have been invested in Anchorage's parks.

"During the public outreach for Anchorage's park plan years ago, many people spoke about the need for a park foundation -- a place where people have full confidence that privately donated funds will be spent as the giver intends," said Beth Nordlund, Director. "The Anchorage Park Foundation was created to make investing in parks easy and rewarding. It is a tried and true concept in communities around the nation, but ours was built in response public demand at the right time for Anchorage."

She said: "Our park foundation works with groups ranging from loose groups of neighbors, to groups that are highly organized fundraising machines, to families seeking to memorialize a loved one with a simple park bench."

Partnership with The Alaska Foundation has been key to the success, Beth said.

"Our partnership with ACF allows us to focus on supporting park and recreation improvements," Beth said. "While ACF works on the business of investing funds and dealing with things like bequests. ACF's work behind the scenes allows volunteers to focus their energy where their impact can be greatest, on making park improvements and giving back to the community."