Spokane North Notes
 
A weekly bulletin of the Spokane-North Rotary Club
July 27, 2015
Editors: Chuck Rehberg and Sandy Fink
Photos: Eric Johnson
Program coordinator: Brad Stark
 
          Meet the governor: Rotary District 5080 Gov. Mike Dalessli, a Spokane South Rotarian, will be our featured speaker Monday, Aug. 3.  Please plan to attend to hear Mike’s plans for his year of Rotary leadership.
 
          Gift-giving:  Club President Lenore Romney on July 27 distributed the latest in a long line of Rotary pins, with the RI theme for this Rotary year, “Be a Gift to the World.”  We wonder: which of our club members has the largest collection of Rotary pins? If you have a sizable number, let us know.
 
Parks Foundation makes a splash
         Whether it’s providing free-swim passes for needy children or consulting on Riverfront Park’s ambitious renovation plans, the Spokane Parks Foundation lives its mission of “inspiring giving and passion for our parks.” 
Executive director, Heather Beebe-Stevens updated the club July 27 on the foundation’s activities.
 
           “You can’t just write a check to the city, so the foundation provides a way we can support all of the parks in Spokane County,” said Beebe-Stevens, who is joining Rotary South.
 
            She said the foundation dates to 1951 in Spokane, but reasons for supporting parks date at least to the “Olmstead era” 100 years ago.  The Olmstead brothers designed New York’s Central Park and worked in many cities nationwide and in the Northwest, including Spokane.
 
            As one benefit of local support, Beebe-Stevens cited “the proximate principle,” which shows higher property values for homes located closer to parks.  One study estimated an average additional resale value of $2,262 for homes near parks.
 
            Another factor is that strong park systems “lead to more vibrant communities,” she said.
 
           Also, having available parks helps fight America’s obesity epidemic, especially among kids, she said.  She cited Center for Disease Control data that 17 percent of the kids in the U.S. are obese and the childhood obesity rate tripled from 1980 to 2008.  Whether it’s video games or other distractions, more exercise is one answer, and a good park system helps with that.
 
           Obesity among adults also is increasing, she said, with a rate of 26 percent in Washington and 27 percent in Spokane County.  The foundation’s next target, she said, “is seniors.”
 
           Since poverty also is widespread – ESD 101 data shows 35 percent of students in its area qualify for free- or reduced-price lunches – programs like the foundation’s “Make a Splash in a Kid’s Life” do make a difference.
 
           Beebe-Stevens said that since the city started charging kids to swim in local pools donations to the foundation have funded some 16,000 free swims, 280 swim lessons and provided 406 swim suits, which are required in local pools.
 
            On the other end of park support, she said the foundation “serves as a C-3” (as in the 501-C-3 charitable deduction program) for projects large and small.
 
            No local project is larger than the $65 million-plus Riverfront reno.  Parks and other city leaders are considering a capital campaign to supplement the bond revenues, much of which will be allocated to replacing the Howard Street bridge and other hard-scape elements in Riverfront.
 
           The foundation can serve as a pass-through for donations and as a consultant to fund-raisers. Outgoing foundation board president Carol Neupert is on the Riverfront Park advisory board.
“With a budget of just $110,000, we are small potatoes in the giving world,” Beebe-Stevens said.  “The Community Foundation, for example, is much larger.”  The foundation, located at 222 W. Mission, has a staff of Beebe-Stevens (for 30 hours a week), a part-time office-manager/bookkeeper and an intern.
 
           Still, the Parks Foundation has provided more than $2 million in the last 60-plus years for various parks projects.  And its proceeds from the Expo ’74 40th anniversary celebration have provided start-up money for the 2020 Riverfront Park Fund, appropriate since Expo’s legacy was the central-city park.
 
           Beebe-Stevens concluded that “simply put, parks build communities.”  And the Spokane Parks Foundation helps build park systems throughout the county.
 
           No local project is larger than the $65 million-plus Riverfront reno.  Parks and other city leaders are considering a capital campaign to supplement the bond revenues, much of which will be allocated to replacing the Howard Street bridge and other hard-scape elements in Riverfront.
 
          The foundation can serve as a pass-through for donations and as a consultant to fund-raisers. Outgoing foundation board president Carol Neupert is on the Riverfront Park advisory board.
“With a budget of just $110,000, we are small potatoes in the giving world,” Beebe-Stevens said.  “The Community Foundation, for example, is much larger.”  The foundation, located at 222 W. Mission, has a staff of Beebe-Stevens (for 30 hours a week), a part-time office-manager/bookkeeper and an intern.
 
           Still, the Parks Foundation has provided more than $2 million in the last 60-plus years for various parks projects.  And its proceeds from the Expo ’74 40th anniversary celebration have provided start-up money for the 2020 Riverfront Park Fund, appropriate since Expo’s legacy was the central-city park.
 
           Beebe-Stevens concluded that “simply put, parks build communities.”  And the Spokane Parks Foundation helps build park systems throughout the county.