November 2020 - Parks & Recreation - 43

is a " very " or " extremely " important partner in this regard.
However, park foundations can
be much more than just an agency's fundraising arm. To get the
most from this partnership, we
recommend park and recreation
leaders work with their park
foundation to find areas to contribute beyond direct financial
support. Some of the other roles
in which park and recreation
leaders see their foundation as a
" very " or " extremely " important
partner include:
* Special events (35 percent)
* Capital construction projects (28
percent)
* Parkland or Facility acquisition
(27 percent)
* Marketing (24 percent)
* Lobbying/Advocacy and Political activity (24 percent)
Lean into ﬂexibility
and versatility.
As a nonprofit (and nongovernmental)
organization,
park foundations have greater flexibility at an institutional
level. For example, park foundations may have significant
leeway in terms of how they
fundraise, where to allocate the
funds and how quickly to take action. Park and recreation leaders

should make use of that flexibility whenever possible and work
with foundations to envision
creative strategies that address
outstanding issues in ways that
public agencies cannot.
In describing this characteristic flexibility, one park and recreation agency leader shared with
us how their foundation collaborates with a local craft brewery
and local apiarists (beekeepers)
to brew a beer using honey collected from honeybee hives in
the parks. A portion of the proceeds fund park-related causes in
partnership with the local agency. Interviewees related a variety
of examples like this one, emphasizing the importance of encouraging outside-the-box thinking from foundation partners.
Park foundations can serve as
a source of knowledge, skills and
connection not necessarily present
in a local agency. For example,
people who volunteer to serve at
park foundations come from all
walks of life. Tap into that knowledge base when appropriate -
maybe a board member comes
from a financial or legal background, or perhaps someone has
a connection with an influential
local leader who can bridge prior
community engagement gaps.

Park and recreation agency-foundation
relationships may be more necessary
than ever in light of the budgetary
and staﬃng issues brought on by the
COVID-19 pandemic.

Communication is key.
Communication is critical to the
success of the agency-foundation
relationship in many ways. Part
of the communication equation
has to do with frequency: agency leaders who report more frequent communication with their
foundation are more likely to
enjoy better and more effective
relationships with their agencies'
foundations.
We note that frequent communication is not, by itself, enough.
Both agency and foundation leaders stress the need for purposeful
communication that is focused
on aligning long-term goals and
objectives, as well as day-to-day
operations. An overwhelming ma-

Communication is critical to
the success of the agencyfoundation relationship
in many ways. Part of the
communication equation has to
do with frequency....

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Parks & Recreation

November 2020 - Parks & Recreation

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