Black Friday is a week away, and we’re excited to continue one of our favorite seasonal traditions. The Foundation and our partner REI are pausing the holiday to-do lists to #optoutside instead of shopping on Black Friday. Spending your day off in nature is always an excellent way to unplug and unwind during a busy […]
A chat with Shelley Davis: Fundraising during the COVID lockdown
As Shelley Davis prepares to step down as President of the Forest Preserve Foundation and take the helm of another Chicago-based Foundation, she took time to talk about fundraising in the time of the COVID pandemic. Davis, who has an extensive background in philanthropy, has shepherded the Forest Preserves Foundation through seven years of continued […]
Key sponsor increases its support for 2020 Conservation Cup
Year after year, Billy Casper Golf offers unparalleled in-kind support for the Conservation Cup. This year the organization stepped up in a huge way, making a title sponsor $15,000 cash donation to the Foundation’s annual major fundraising event. “These are tough times and we know that the Conservation Cup is facing an uphill battle with […]
Foundation grant supports increased wages for Forest Preserve Experience
Annicka Barker, a 2019 Forest Preserve Experience participant, shared a new-found passion with her family. A $100,000 grant from the Forest Preserve Foundation will help underwrite increased wages for Forest Preserve Experience crew members this summer. “We are so pleased to support young people who rely on summer employment to help themselves and, in many […]
Foundation releases new ebook: Stories from the Preserves
It is through telling the stories behind the work the Foundation does that we connect best with our friends and supporters. Whether it’s in a forest preserve or at one of our public events, the Foundation touches so many people. And they touch us. We use our blog to keep you informed about what we […]
Choose your #optoutside adventure for any weather in the Forest Preserves
This Black Friday, take a tip from our friends at REI and #OptOutside instead of waiting in line at the mall. Spending Black Friday outside is better for your wallet and your health, more respectful to service industry employees, and way more fun. Here’s how you can have an adventure in the Forest Preserves of […]
Walk through Cap Sauers highlights the success of restoration efforts
Forest Preserve Foundation board members, donors and guests pose after their hike through Cap Sauers Holding Preserve. Editor’s note: Earlier this year, the Foundation supported restoration efforts in Cap Sauers Holding Preserves with funds received from a generous anonymous donor. On Oct. 5, two Forest Preserve staff members led a walk through the Preserves to […]
Toni Preckwinkle embraces role as Forest Preserves advocate and steward
Board member Tom Lanctot (left), Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Forest Preserves General Superintendent Arnold Randall. “The Forest Preserves has no better advocate and no better steward than [Cook County Board] President [Toni] Preckwinkle,” Foundation board member Tom Lanctot told guests at the May 14 Conservation Cup Sponsor Apprecation Breakfast. “She’s made the […]
Couple’s donation funds grant that expands conservation program into schools
Through their $5,000 donation to the Forest Preserve Foundation, a Champaign couple with deep ties to Chicago is supporting an expansion of the Forest Preserves Conservation@Home program into nine schools in Cook County. The gift by Warren Lavey and Dr. Holly Rosencranz will fund a grant that allows the schools to start or expand pollinator […]
Annual event celebrates volunteers for their work in the Preserves
Volunteers are critical to maintaining the health and vitality of the Forest Preserves. Without them, the professional staff just doesn’t have the capacity required to reach all 70,000 acres that make up the Forest Preserves of Cook County. At the Forest Preserve Foundation, we are always happy to give volunteers their proper due and recognition. […]