May 2012 - Parks & Recreation - 58

National * Recreation * Foundation
NRF SPOTLIGHT

s pa r t of an ongoing series on the National
Recreation Foundation, Parks
& Recreation highlights grant recipients for
the foundation's program benefitting atrisk youths. This month features programs
from Texas, Colorado, and Illinois.

■■

Camp For All Grant-$30,605.

The grant is in its third year of funding in
order to enhance Houston-based Camp
For All's ropes challenge course which remains the only universally designed challenge course in the country. Camp For all
is a unique, barrier-free camp working in
partnership with other nonprofits to enrich
the lives of children and adults with challenging illnesses or special needs, as well
as their families throughout the year. It includes a fully accessible camping and retreat facility that has been serving children
and adults with disabilities and chronic illnesses since 1938 while continuing to provide approximately 68 percent of the cost
for each camper to attend. The success
of the enhancement of the ropes course
will both directly benefit the participants
as well as serving as a model which other

institutions in the special needs camping
industry can replicate.
■■ Colorado UpLift/Model Replication
Training Center Grant-$50,000.

Colorado UpLift has been serving the
Denver metropolitan area since 1982,
working to build long-term, life-changing relationships with urban youth. The
program teaches youth character values, life skills, enhances their own leadership abilities, and provides them with an
opportunity to develop their teamwork
skills. Youth who are involved three or
more years in the program have achieved
a 90 percent rate of high school graduation. The successes of UpLift have been
documented leading to replication models launching in four U.S. cities (Orlando,
Phoenix, New York, and Portland). To continue extending the program, the NRF is
helping provide seed funding to transition

the UpLift Model Replication Training
Center (UMRTC) from a " virtual " organizations supported by Colorado UpLift
resources, to a formal and independent
501c3 organization that will help interested parties nationwide address the complex needs of urban youth to ensure their
success. This grant helps secure that the
model will be repeated in other areas and
continue to support urban youth.
■■ Cristo Rey Jesuit High School/
Healthy Lifestyles Grant-$47,092.

This is the third year of funding for the
Healthy Lifestyles Program at Chicagobased Cristo Rey Jesuit Schools. Cristo
Rey consists of 24 college preparatory
high schools that serve low-income urban
youth across 17 states and the District of
Columbia. Healthy Lifestyles is a pilot program that encompasses nutrition, physical activity, and team-building activities
in order to help students develop healthy
habits that they can then model for their
families and communities. Successful programs are replicated to reach all students
and their families in many parts of the
country.

The National Recreation Foundation
The National Recreation Foundation and NRPA,
along with its predecessor organizations, have
had a close working relationship since 1919. The
foundation has supported many programs and
activities through NRPA for all of those years,
including the National Recreation School, the
World Leisure and Recreation Association, and
many other programs of the former National
Recreation Association and NRPA. In more recent years the foundation's endowment portfolio has grown significantly, which has made

possible the funding of more than $10 million
of NPRA programs and activities. In addition
to NRPA, the NRF supports many other notfor-profit organizations and government agencies throughout the United States. In 2010-2011
grants were made to 36 programs for a total of
just under $2 million.
The mission is " to be a life-enhancing force
on the youth of the nation by investing strategically in recreation with a special focus on
programs for those that are economically,

physically, or mentally disadvantaged. " The
NRF gives funding priority to organizations
working to coordinate efforts among local,
state, and national agencies that address this
mission, as well as to programs focusing on outcomes leading to significant social change. The
foundation views recreation and the leisure services as a broad and holistic perspective that
assists youth-at-risk by encouraging healthy
lifestyles for all. www.nationalrecreationfoundation.org.

w w w . N R P A . O R G M A Y 2 0 1 2 Parks

& Recreation 55

May 2012 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2012 - Parks & Recreation