2024: Another Year of Impact
By Yordanos Tesfazion
As another year comes to a close, we are excited to share some of the achievements of our partners and staff over the past 12 months. This year has been a special one at Seattle Parks Foundation – from our 25th Anniversary Love Parks Gala to the expansion of our team, 2024 could not have been more fulfilling!
2024 brought us 33 new partners, dozens of partner-led events, two park grand openings and much more!
Here are just a few of the exciting accomplishments we celebrated this year:
We welcomed 33 partners to our fiscal sponsorship program this year! Their projects range from community emergency preparedness education to coordinating organized clean-up groups and align with SPF’s goals of advocating for equity in public spaces, activated parks and healthy people, neighborhood-based climate solutions, and increased community building.
A Cleaner Alki
Banchero Legacy Group
Belltown United
Broadview Prepares
Capitol Hill Community Council
Central District Community Preservation and Development Authority (CD CPDA)
CIS
Downtown Community Council
Enumclaw Plateau Community Assocation
Friends of Bryant Park
Friends of Denny Blaine Park
Friends of Hutchinson Playground
Friends of Madison Park
Friends of Phinney Avenue N Street Painting
Friends of Rivers Oceans and Mountains (ROAM)
Friends of West Seattle Bike Park
Green Seattle Partnership
Hillman City Neighborhood Association
Indigenous Advisory Council
Juneau Street Resilience Hub
Khmer Community Health Advocates
King County International Airport Coalition
Lao Community Health Advocates
Lower Maple Leaf Centennial Intersection Mural
Montanistas de Washington
Pinehurst Emergency Hub
Ravenna Community Garden
SeaPal
Seattle Martin Luther King Jr. Organizing Coalition
Seattle Metro Pickleball Association
Seattle Nature Alliance
The Canary Collective
Trees and People Coalition
Community-led park projects Be’er Sheva Park and Pathways Park had a lot to celebrate this year! Thanks to the Link2Lake Steering Committee, South Seattle residents celebrated the grand re-opening of Be’er Sheva Park on April 13. A few months later on June 8, Sand Point community members celebrated the grand opening of Pathways Park, a long-anticipated moment that took seven years to complete.
We’re grateful for the employees at Amazon, Foundation for International Understanding Through Students, Microsoft and Ocean Network Express for participating in our corporate engagement opportunities to take care of our parks and public spaces.
300+ Projects in 25 Years: September 2024 marked the beginning of our 25th anniversary as an organization! We’re proud of the grassroot projects led by our community partners and appreciate the ongoing support from our philanthropic and corporate partners over the years.
SPF’s First Gala in 14 Years: In September, we hosted our Love Parks Gala at the Museum of History and Industry. Thanks to the generosity of our gala guests, we surpassed our fundraising goal for the night and raised over $389,000! On this memorable night, we also recognized award winners: Deb McNeil, Robert Stephens Jr., and Paige Reischl.
26 Gala Sponsors: Thank you so much to our sponsors who helped make the Love Parks Gala a reality!
Amazon
Delta
Seattle Parks & Recreation
Tinte Cellars
T-Mobile
Berger Partnership
Earth Finance
MiiR
One Roof Foundation
Pacifica Law Group
Snell & Wilmer
Studio Matthews
Alaska Airlines
Associated Recreation Council
BNY Wealth
Clise Properties
Downtown Seattle Association
Friends of Waterfront Park
Georgetown Brewing
Mithun
REI
Seattle Public Utilities
Site Workshop
Thorntail Hard Agave
Tito’s Handmade Vodka
Volunteer Park Trust
Three New Staff Members: We welcomed a few new staff members to SPF over the last year:
Louise Bednarik, Public Grants Administrator
Shirley Coly, Major Giving Strategist
Yordanos Tesfazion, Content Coordinator
We’re grateful to have you all on the team and looking forward to entering a new year together!
SPF-Led Partner Events: This year, our Partner team worked hard to organize in-person events for our partners to acknowledge their efforts and give them a space where they can collaborate and get to know each other. The Partner team hosted our annual Partner Celebration in June at El Centro de la Raza. A few months later in October, our partners were invited to a Partner Networking and Happy Hour where they mingled amongst themselves and SPF staff while enjoying refreshments and a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean.
Tree Equity Network Community-Building: Tree Equity Network (TEN) officially launched their Slack channel this year, making it easier for participating organizations and government agencies to communicate and organize together. TEN also hosted a social this fall, where the group discussed challenges in urban forest policy and practice and brainstormed how our network can make positive change through advocacy.
Garfield Super Block eCards: As of this month, when you donate to SPF in honor or memory of a loved one, you can now send your family and friends a unique eCard.
When making your donation, select ‘Dedicate my donation in honor or memory of someone’ and pick from one of the available four designs. The eCard will immediately be sent to the recipient of your choice.
Huge shoutout to the talented artists at Garfield Super Block for designing these eCards!
Climate, Jamie Colacecchi
Community, Juliet Shen
Health, Kevin Paul
Equity, Monique Shanta’U Worthy
Your Support Goes a Long Way!
Of course, this list of accomplishments is the direct result of the support SPF receives from our community, philanthropic, and corporate partners – thank you!
Want to make a gift before the end of the year? There’s still time! Better yet – all donations going towards general operations will be matched through the end of the year. Don’t forget to select ‘Dedicate my donation in honor or in memory of someone’ to send an eCard!
Join us as we continue our 25th Anniversary festivities into the new year. Stay up to date on what we have planned by visiting our Events Calendar, subscribing to our eNews, or following us on social media – you won’t want to miss out!
Start planning ahead by saving the following dates for next year’s confirmed 25th Anniversary events:
- Earth Day Climate Town Hall – Panelists to be announced in January.
- Where: Town Hall; 1119 8th Ave, Seattle, WA 98101
- When: Tuesday, April 22, 2025
- Pop-Up Concerts in the Park
- Wednesday, July 9, 2025: Seward Park Amphitheater
- Wednesday, July 16, 2025: Be’er Sheva Park Cultural Stage
- Wednesday, July 23, 2025: Magnuson Park Amphitheater
- Wednesday, July 30, 2025: Dr. Blanche Lavizzo Park Stage
- Wednesday, August 6, 2025: Kubota Garden Terrace Overlook
- Wednesday, August 13, 2025: Westlake Park Stage
- Wednesday, August 20, 2025: Volunteer Park Amphitheater
- Wednesday, August 27, 2025: Waterfront Stage