What is the Centennial Fundraising campaign? Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation, the official non-profit partner of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, has launched this campaign to raise a total of $2 million dollars during the State Parks Centennial in 2023.
What will the money be used for? To fund priority projects that will enhance visitor experiences at all 88 state parks. TPWF worked
directly with park superintendents and State Parks leadership over a period of many months to determine each park’s priority project. The priority projects range from dark sky viewing equipment at Davis Mountains State Park to a pontoon boat for marsh tours at Sea Rim State Park, shade trees at Balmorhea State Park’s iconic pool, water bottle filling stations, search and rescue equipment, and so much more.
How is TPWF raising the money? TPWF has created a dedicated fundraising website texasparks100 with a webpage and a link to the donation form for your park and is promoting the campaign with e-newsletters, email blasts, direct mail, print ads, social media and press releases. TPWF also has secured the support of four generous philanthropic leaders who have pledged to match all donations for the statewide campaign. These generous Texans are recognized as the “Centennial Champions” and include the Fondren Foundation, The John M. O’Quinn Foundation, the J.W. Couch Foundation, and The Elkins Foundation. TPWF is also seeking grants from foundations and corporations in Texas to help meet the $2 million dollar campaign goal.
What percent of donations through this campaign will go to park projects vs. what percent will TPWF keep to cover costs? 100% of all donations to this campaign will go directly to the park projects! TPWF does not keep any portion of these donations to cover campaign or administrative costs.
How does the match work? Your park will receive matching dollars up to but not exceeding the total remaining balance needed to fund your park’s priority project. For example, if your park project is $10,000 and $6,000 has been donated to your park by the end of the campaign, the Centennial Champions will provide the remaining balance of $4,000 so that the park’s goal will be reached. On the flip side, if TPWF receives $12,000 for the project, the additional $2,000 raised will be kept in a dedicated account for your park. All funds raised specifically for your park will stay with your park.
What can Friends Groups do to help the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation’s $2 million Centennial Fundraising campaign a success? You can help by letting your Friends Group members, your friends, family and local businesses know about TPWF’s fundraising campaign for Texas State Parks and by asking them to make a donation to your park’s priority project and spread the word to their network and customers. Potential tactics could include:
• Sending an email to all your contacts/membership
• Posting on any social media channels you have access to
• Asking local businesses to post a flyer
TPWF and TPWD have developed several tools to help you do this: an email template you can customize for your park; park-specific flyers that can be printed or emailed; a park-specific social media graphic; and the texasparks100 website that has a dedicated webpage with a succinct description of your park’s project, its fundraising goal and a link to the donation form for your park. Also, if you directly ask people to make a donation to TPWF for your park’s project, you may be surprised how many people will respond positively to your ask!
Is there a way to inquire how much has been raised so far to see if we are on track to meet our goal? Yes, for this and all other questions reach out to Darcy Bontempo, TPWF Centennial Project Coordinator at [email protected]. Darcy will also provide Kevin Good with Texans for State Parks a monthly summary of what has been received to date for each park.
Our Friends Group knows someone involved with a private foundation or who is a decision maker at a large corporation. How can we ask them for money?
Reach out to Darcy Bontempo and she will coordinate to have TPWF staff contact you and discuss the best approach. This could be for you to approach your contact directly to discuss the opportunity or make an introduction to TPWF staff. If a formal proposal or request letter needs to be submitted, TPWF staff is happy to handle the paperwork. Be sure to let the park superintendent know that you are working with TPWF on this ask.