HURRICANE, W.Va. –The West Virginia State Parks Foundation received a $50,000 grant earlier this month to support preservation efforts across the state’s 39 parks.
The grant was awarded by the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, which was founded in 1944 by Michael and Sarah Benedum. The foundation supports initiatives in education, economic development, health, and community development.
West Virginia State Parks Foundation Executive Director Brad Reed said the funding will help strengthen the organization’s internal structure while expanding public awareness, fundraising, and advocacy efforts.
“Will help us build our brand, build our reputation, and bring us to the point that people are very secure in the knowledge that donating money to us directly goes to our West Virginia State Parks and even to an individual state park if somebody wanted to donate in that way,” Reed said on MetroNews Midday Tuesday afternoon.
The West Virginia State Parks Foundation, a nonprofit organization, was established in 1998.
Reed said West Virginia has one of the strongest state park systems in the country and that continued investment is necessary to maintain that standing.
“What we need to do, is we need to make sure that everyone is talking from the same playbook,” Reed said. “Whether that be regular citizens, park lovers, advocacy interest groups, legislators, the governor’s office, everyone needs to understand the value of these state parks and what they do for the state and the citizenry overall.”
Reed said the grant will also support efforts to keep state parks free for visitors.
“What we believe is that the citizens already contribute, our parks were there as a result of their tax dollars and various bond sales and things that happened over the years,” Reed said. “These parks belong to the people of West Virginia, and I would certainly like to keep them free.”
He said the funding will help the foundation take a significant step forward by modeling future efforts after Oglebay Park, where many facilities were built through private donations.
“What we want to do is take that next step into an Oglebay type situation, so many of their facilities were built with donations, and that’s what we want to do is take this to the next level across our park system,” Reed said.
You can learn more about the foundation here.