On Wednesday, the El Paso County Parks Advisory Board honored five community donors as 2017 Partners in the Park with commemorative awards of appreciation. The Partners in the Park Program has brought in more than $140,000 to County Parks since it was started in 2009.
2017 Partners in the Park include:
• Robert & Ellen Hostetler support Fox Run Regional Park. The Hostetler’s are founding partners and have supported Fox Run Regional Park since 2009.
• GE Johnson Construction Company supports Bear Creek Regional Park. GE Johnson has been a valuable partner supporting Bear Creek Regional Park for the past four years. GE Johnson also constructed a new bridge in the Bear Creek Regional Park in 2013 at no cost to the County.
• Heuberger Motors, Subaru supports Bear Creek Dog Park and Fox Run Dog Park. Heuberger Motors has supported the Bear Creek Dog Park since 2010 and provided additional support for the Fox Run Dog Park starting in 2013.
• Gold Hill Mesa is our neighborhood partner supporting the Bear Creek Nature Center for the past three years. They hosted a fundraiser for BCNC and invited us to some of their concerts this past year.
• FedEx is the County’s newest Partner in the Park, supporting Black Forest Regional Park.
The “Partners in the Park” Program was created in 2009 to provide financial support for a designated community asset in the El Paso County Parks system. All donations are used exclusively for El Paso County Parks; to preserve open space, sustain park amenities and to ensure ongoing sustainability for a specific park. All donations are tax deductible.
Partners in the Park benefits include signage at the park entrance, Partners names on the County Parks website, usage of a pavilion and formal recognition by the Parks Advisory Board.
“Without the generous contributions of our citizens, community partners and a multitude of volunteers, we couldn’t operate our County Parks as efficiently or effectively as we do,” said Community Outreach Coordinator Dana Nordstrom. “The Partners in the Park program is a prime example of El Paso County’s many public-private collaborations aimed at maximizing County resources while minimizing the cost to citizens.”
Nordstrom is currently looking for additional Partners specifically for the Fountain Creek Nature Center, Falcon Regional Park, Pineries Open Space, Fountain Creek Regional Park and Homestead Ranch Regional Park.
If you or your company would be interested in lending your support to ongoing operations and maintenance of a favorite park, trail or nature center or just want to learn more about the Partners in the Park program, please contact Dana Nordstrom, at (719) 520-6983 or dananordstrom@elpasoco.com.
El Paso County Parks oversees 8,000 acres of park land and open space, 2,400 acres of conservation easements, 105 miles of trails, two nature centers, the El Paso County Fairgrounds and Event Complex and more than 1,000 recreation and environmental education programs.