FOUNDATION CORNER Foundation Celebrates 50 Years

By Jennifer Fink, MRPF President

Greetings! As we enter 2023 I am excited to share that the Minnesota Recreation and Park Foundation will be spending the year celebrating its 50th Anniversary! We will be spending time working with MRPA’s favorite historian, Bob Kojetin, to share some of our favorite bits of history about the Foundation’s beginnings. The organization began in June of 1973, and incorporated as a non-profit January 30, 1974 with 18 donors and $200. One of the first fundraisers was the sale of calendars featuring a local nature photographer from Eden Prairie for $3.95.

More has changed in the last 50 years than has stayed the same in the field of parks and recreation; which is what the founders seemed to have in mind when they created this organization. When describing the purpose of the newly created Foundation, listed first is “To encourage, coordinate, and conduct research and study in the field of recreation, parks, and conservation.” The Foundation has spent many years inspiring innovation by funding the MRPF new initiative grants. This process has been spear headed by Lisa Abernathy for the last 10+ years. In