Bylaws: Breathing Life into the Organizational Culture of Park Foundations By Dr. Nathan A. Schaumleffel, CPRP, CNP, CFRM, CVA, CYSA, Proprietor & Senior Consultant, Driven Strategic LLC
In Illinois Parks & Recreation magazine, I shared “friends groups and park foundations are where public park and recreation administration and the nonprofit world of philanthropy, fundraising, and volunteer management collide!” (2016, p 12). I continued, “an optimally-functioning park foundation can counteract public budgeting trends by invoking the power of philanthropy and volunteerism to replace unfunded budgetary items” (2016, p.13).
28 • Colorado Byline | Summer 2021
For this article, I will loosely use the term park foundation to include any nonprofit that supports a public park, recreation, conservation, or open space preservation service provider. Other names for park foundations include friends groups, public lands partners, conservancies, associations, among others. Whatever we call these organizations, all must have articles of incorporation and bylaws, also known as governing documents.
