The Council of Park Friends of Clark Reservation State Park has been awarded an $8,500 matching grant from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund’s (EPF) Park and Trail Partnership Program to improve the exhibits at the Clark Reservation Nature Center. The Friends group will have to raise an additional $1,500 in matching funds, for a total of $10,000 for the project.
The grant is one of 21 awards totaling $450,000 for organizations dedicated to the stewardship and promotion of New York’s State Parks and Historic Sites. These grants, funded through the EPF, will be matched by more than $200,000 in private and local funding and will support projects to strengthen park “Friends” groups and enhance public access and recreational opportunities at state parks and historic sites across the state.
Clark Reservation’s Friends group is a nonprofit organization comprised solely of volunteers. The group sponsors virtually all events and exhibits at the Clark Reservation Nature Center and Native Plant Garden. Funds also go toward educational programming and hikes from May through October.
The group will be using the grant funds to update and replace educational exhibits and to expand and revitalize informational materials. The group’s president, Tina Redmond, is excited about receiving the grant. “We have been working with minimal funds to bring our Nature Center into the 21st century,” she said. “This grant is a stepping stone enabling us to move forward.”
The Clark Reservation Council of Park Friends – also known as Friends of Clark Reservation – was established in 1980 to help interpret and promote the natural beauty and geologic phenomena found at Clark Reservation State Park. For more information, or to donate toward completion of this project, visit councilofparkfriends.org.
