Grant Programs

The San Mateo County Parks Foundation offers three grant opportunities throughout the year for volunteer groups, San Mateo County Park rangers, and nonprofit organizations seeking to connect their communities with parks. Read on to learn more about some of our recent grantees and their programs and projects.

Enhancing Equitable Access Grant Program

For the past four years, our Enhancing Equitable Access grant program has had a positive impact in communities across San Mateo County. The goal of this initiative is to fund and support organizations that increase opportunities for Black, Indigenous and people of color, and low-income and marginalized youth and their families to enjoy the many benefits of being in parks surrounded by nature.

We ask grantees to tell us what improved access to parks means for their communities. In return, they have spearheaded numerous initiatives that have opened doors to the outdoors for people of all ages. Here are some of the meaningful activities that are fostering curiosity and exploration in nature:

• Surfing and Ocean Access: Through surf clinics and leadership programs, Salted Roots helps teenagers gain confidence in the ocean. These experiences build skills and create a safe space to foster community that’s based on healing and enjoyment of the ocean.
• Outdoor Adventures: Kids have had the opportunity to go hiking, biking, and camping, all led by bilingual and bicultural staff and volunteers. Families get to enjoy the outdoors together without technology and are instead inspired by nature. These experiences were made possible thanks to our partners: Rise South City, Siena Youth Center, Girls to Women, and Exploring New Horizons.
• Senior Engagement: Understanding the isolation and loneliness that seniors can experience, Puente de la Costa Sur developed their 60+ Connection and Wellbeing Program. This program brings seniors out to San Mateo County parks to connect with nature and each other in a calm, slow-paced group.
• Empowering Teenagers: Redwood City Together, through their Promotores program, empowers teenagers by providing them with a stipend for their time promoting parks at community events. Promotores are trusted community members who act as liaisons to meaningful information and resources for their neighbors and neighborhoods. The South San Francisco Education Foundation supported Baden High School students with a graduation celebration at Coyote Point and team-building and leadership activities at San Bruno Mountain. The students also learned about park related career opportunities to help prepare them for the future.

The staff at Siena Youth Center have expressed their enthusiasm for the accomplishments of this initiative, sharing the following feedback,

“Students were able to immerse themselves in the natural world and learn interesting facts through multiple senses. It gave students the space and environment to have meaningful conversations with their peers without the distractions of technology.” 

Barriers to knowing and enjoying our San Mateo County parks come in many forms. For some, it is a lack of awareness about local parks in the first place. For others, it is not feeling safe or welcome in parks due to a lack of translated materials or not seeing people who look like them in the parks. Park fees and a lack of personal transportation also prevent people from visiting parks. The San Mateo County Parks Foundation is committed to dismantling these barriers so we may continue to nurture the next generation of park stewards.

Thank you to our partners for making these experiences and outings possible. Together, we are creating a more welcoming outdoor environment for everyone!

 

Park Ranger Grant Program

Throughout the year, needs come up in the parks that cannot be met through a park district’s tight budget. Park rangers are essential workers who make sure parks are open every day. Rain or shine, they are working to ensure safe trails, well-stocked bathrooms, and accessible amenities that make your visit more enjoyable. Rangers submit grant requests to the Parks Foundation which are approved on a rolling basis. Below are some of the tools and projects we have funded over the last few years.

Tools

A dual slope laser level which allows the maintenance team to easily and accurately complete projects that require precise slope and grades such as building foundation pads, grading roads, and installing adequate drainage on roads.

A wood planer for milling a board to a uniform thickness from rough-cut lumber for things such as benches and picnic tables.

A valve exercising program to exercise all water valves at Coyote Point for proper function and operation. The project benefits the park by allowing park rangers to shut off water valves quickly, reducing the amount of water loss due to breaks, and saving infrastructure from excess water damage.

A water line locator kit is a specialized and sophisticated method of detecting and tracing the path of underground water lines. It utilizes cutting-edge technology and equipment to pinpoint the exact location and depth of water pipes, thereby reducing the need for extensive and costly excavations or damage.

Battery-powered equipment such as pole saws, trimmers, circular saws, hand blowers and angle grinders to phase out gas-powered tools.

Trails and Access

The Lawler Bridge serves the equestrian community by connecting the east side of 280 to the west side and nearby parks and trails maintained and operated by the San Mateo County Parks Department. Funding was used to purchase new redwood lumber and hardware to rebuild this bridge and make it stronger than before.

Located near Greer Road in Huddart Park, the service road bridge was showing damage to the decking, and some of the main floor beams needed replacement. Woodside Fire uses this entrance into the park, but they did not want to drive their fire truck across the bridge until it was fixed.

The Crocker Gate entrance at San Bruno Mountain was a quick and easy access improvement project that made a difference in people’s lives right away. The widened and smoothed trail now allows people in wheelchairs access to the park from neighborhoods to the northwest.

Other Projects

ADA compliant drinking fountain with a water bowl for dogs at Junipero Serra Park.

Edgewood Farms planter boxes for the Friends of Edgewood’s demonstration garden. Edgewood farms was created to help cultivate more native plant seeds.

Fitzgerald Marine Reserve Grey Whale display

 

Volunteer Group Grant Program

The San Mateo County Parks system is lucky to have volunteer groups looking after specific parks and engaging park visitors in a variety of ways. Some of these groups are 100% powered by volunteers while others have a small staff. The San Mateo County Parks Foundation provides grants to the following organziations to aid them in their efforts. We commend them for the excellent work they do.

The Friends of Edgewood has been around since 1993 and their mission is to protect Edgewood’s extraordinary biodiversity and foster lasting connections with Edgewood and the larger natural world. This all-volunteer group engages in land and wildlife stewardship, nature education, and interpretive programs. Among their many programs are the weekly Weed Warriors, docent-led wildflower hikes and the Edgewood native garden. There are many ways for you to get involved with this remarkable group.

The Friends of Huddart and Wunderlich Parks’ mission is to promote the positive health and community benefits provided by these parks and to support equitable and inclusive access for all park users. They lead hikes, provide environmental education, showcase local history, and celebrate the unique horse heritage of San Mateo County. Some volunteer opportunities include being a Carriage Room Museum docent or a Meet a Mini Horse Ambassador.

The Friends of San Pedro Valley play a significant role in supporting park rangers in their activities and in interpreting the park’s resources to the public. Volunteers staff the Visitor Center reception desk, stock the Trailside Store, keep a reference library, work on the trails and in the native plant garden, and host many informative nature talks for kids and adults alike. We invite you to check out their new Nature Journal Tree Plaques.

The Pacific Beach Coalition is dedicated to preserving the ocean, coastal habitats and wildlife, and ending litter; through advocacy, education, community building, and citizen action. They have grown from looking after just Pacifica’s beaches to now holding beach clean ups up and down the coast and in Foster City. They have created toolkits for teachers, set their sights on cigarette butt litter and organize an annual Earth Day of Action that is not to be missed. Beach clean-up site captains are needed!

San Bruno Mountain Watch’s mission is to care for San Bruno Mountain through conservation, ecological restoration, education, and advocacy in partnership with local communities. Among their many ecological restoration initiatives is the Colma Creek Collective which monitors and restores the health of the creek at its two most publicly accessible portions including the headwaters at San Bruno Mountain. They also operate Mission Blue Nursery which grows native plants exclusively from seeds and cuttings collected by permit on San Bruno Mountain.

The Trail Center formed in 1983 to provide and promote quality non-motorized trail opportunities for all people in San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, and San Francisco counties. The Trail Center works with government agencies, outdoor enthusiasts, and other interested parties to create and maintain trails. They also work with organizations to maintain the Pacific Crest Trail. They are always on the lookout for volunteers.

For questions about the San Mateo County Parks Foundation’s Volunteer Group Grant Program, please email Michele Beasley at Michele@SupportParks.org.