The Friends of Patterson Park Board & Committees help guide the work of the Friends.
If you’ve been a Friends of Patterson Park member for a bit, you might know Katie plays original songs about the Park on her ukulele, in addition to planning all those programs; Lesley is our bird and tree expert, in addition to keeping the books; Shannon coordinates membership, and plans events like the Holiday Observatory Lighting; Emma is running volunteer events and learning all about the park; and Jennifer is our fearless leader - but do you know the Friends of Patterson Park Board?
Among other activities, the FPP Board is responsible for developing the Friends’ mission, helping the organization achieve that mission and adopting an annual budget. Some Board members chair committees; for instance, Malindi chairs the capital projects committee, and works closely with Jennifer to oversee the White House renovation (and teaches Zumba!). As chair of the finance committee, Mitch works with Lesley to evaluate our financial health and forecast future revenues and expenditures. And Shara chairs the development/membership committee, who among other things planned our East Baltimore Olympics. And that’s not all! Our board does not just advocate for Patterson Park; our advocacy committee meets with other Friends groups from other parks in the city to share opportunities and ideas.
It’s important to know that your board works hard, but we also want to share why we care about Patterson Park.
During a recent Board meeting, we talked about our experiences with the Park, and what makes it special to us. Board members shared that the green space provides a gathering space for the surrounding community, even in the center of a major city. “The green space and oasis right in the city brings together the best of both worlds.”
We talked about why the Friends of Patterson Park exists. We found that our strength lies in our partnerships - as the only nonprofit solely dedicated to Patterson Park, we have the privilege of working with local organizations like SoutheastCDC, Creative Alliance, and Citywide partners like WYPR, to bring programming and events to Patterson Park.
Finally, we tried to imagine what Patterson Park might be like if Friends of Patterson Park did not exist today. Some board members remember the Park before the Friends existed, and some are newer to the community, but all of us agree that given the limited resources in Baltimore City, the Park would not be as vibrant without the Friends. One unique role that the Friends plays is ensuring that the Park has something for everyone - in part, that means ensuring that one activity or sport does not take up space that cannot be used by someone else (imagine a Park with only paid sports leagues for adults, and no space for free youth soccer).
The 137 acres of green space that is Patterson Park is truly the Best Backyard in Baltimore, and Friends of Patterson Park works to keep it that way, for our whole community.
If you share our passion for Patterson Park, please consider joining a committee of the Friends of Patterson Park Board
We have several committees, including capital projects, finance, development/membership, and advocacy. If you’re not sure how much time you can commit but you know you’d like to get involved, there are always opportunities to volunteer at events. Fill out the form below to let us know you’d like to learn more!