May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 23

tat restoration to make areas more
resilient to potential damage and
communicating with the public on
the dangers of starting fires. As the
effects of climate change continue
to amplify and wildfires become
more prevalent and intense, park
and recreation agencies, like Willamalane,
know their communities
rely on them for safety and health.
Earmarks can fund
projects
outside of safety and emergency
efforts as well. For example, in
the past two years, Willamalane
received two other earmarks for a
tech lab with computers for disadvantaged
kids in the local school
district and a campaign to reduce
the effect of Eastern Filbert Blight
on Filbert trees at Dorris Ranch.
Applying for Earmarks
Kenny Weigandt, the community
engagement director at Willamalane
Park and Recreation
District, says the key to winning
earmarks has been their strong coalition
with Springfield City and
other local groups, which they call
the " United Front. " The United
Front works together to identify
projects that are most important to
each agency, avoiding competition
for funding and benefiting partners
during the funding application process,
as grants typically ask for letters
of support from local agencies.
" As stewards of public land in
Springfield, we realize that our role
in protecting the land, habitats and
environment is what our community
relies on us to do. That's why our
partnerships with other public and
private agencies with shared goals
are so essential. If we didn't have
strong partnerships, our chances of
securing federal and state funding
would be almost zero, and in this
case, it means Springfield would
be at a greater risk of a wildfire
devastating our community, " says
Weigandt.
Beyond local partners, including
hyperlinks to published articles
and other media coverage about
your project in earmark applications
can help legitimize your ask.
For instance, Willamalane included
an NRPA blog post (tinyurl.
com/mtrz678m), podcast episode
(tinyurl.com/33sp7ycd) and magazine
articles
(tinyurl.com/2swn
hyyh)
in its earmark application,
elevating the agency's local project
to national concerns.
For more information on earmarks
and how to apply, visit nrpa.
org/Earmarks.
As summer begins, Willamalane
Earmarks allow Congress to allocate
funding for specific projects or programs
without having to go through the
standard appropriations process.
is putting its earmark funds to
use preventing wildfires, keeping
Springfield safe and preserving the
city's beautiful lands.
Stavroula Kostas is Park Champions Initiative Intern at
NRPA (skostas@nrpa.org).
Safer
Streets
& CL EAR
LOUD
Trusted by more State
Police agencies than all
other radar brands
combined.
StreetDynamics.com
1-800-782-5537
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | MAY 2 0 2 3
| Parks & Recreation
23

http://tinyurl.com/mtrz678m http://tinyurl.com/mtrz678m http://tinyurl.com/33sp7ycd http://tinyurl.com/2swnhyyh http://tinyurl.com/2swnhyyh https://www.nrpa.org/earmarks https://www.nrpa.org/earmarks http://www.StreetDynamics.com

May 2023 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2023 - Parks & Recreation