Tree Plantings Ceremony for Friends of Van Cortlandt Park’s Founders
Monday April 16^th at 1pm
Van Cortlandt House Museum

The Friends of Van Cortlandt Park (FVCP) celebrated our 25^th Anniversary in 2017. Founded in 1992, the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park is an independent community based organization that actively promotes the conservation and improvement of Van Cortlandt Park, the third largest park in NYC, through environmental education and restoration and enhancement of Van Cortlandt Park, its forests and trails.  FVCP celebrated their 25^th Anniversary with a gala on Sunday October 15^th, 2017 where we honored our 6 Founders: Felicity Nitz, Frances Beinecke, Susan Morgenthau, Elizabeth Scheuer, Jane Sokolow and Sybil Wailand and promised to plant trees in their honors.

At 1pm on Monday April 16^th, 2018, the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park along with the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation will plant 6 “Green Mountain” Sugar Maple Trees in honor of FVCP’s 6 Founders along the southern fence of the Van Cortlandt House Museum.

FVCP provides a wide variety of educational, stewardship and community benefit programs with the focus of Bringing Youth, Community and Nature Together!.  Over the next several years, in addition to our usual programming, FVCP will be dedicated to the implementation of projects in the 2034 Van Cortlandt Park Master Plan, which will guide the City’s restoration of Van Cortlandt Park’s natural beauty and provide solutions for the needs of all neighboring communities.  In the Master Plan are two signature initiatives for FVCP, (1) the completion of our 2009 Trails Plan, which was drafted by the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference; and (2) the continued implementation of our newest initiative: “Wetland Stewardship for a Healthier Bronx,” which will improve the health of the existing wetlands and highlight the need to daylight Tibbetts Brook both inside and south of the Park.

“The 25^th anniversary of the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park in 2017 has been the perfect moment to honor our founding members and reflect on how much their initial investment in the park has produced for generations of park users, “said FVCP Board Chair Christopher Rizzo. “ FVCP has raised millions of private dollars and directly advocated for tens of millions of public dollars for park improvements, programs and environmental advocacy.  The result is a better park for all New Yorkers.   As we chart our path for the next 25 years we face an even bigger goal– implementation of the 2034 Van Cortlandt Park Master Plan.   I’m confident this special partnership between FVCP and New York City will make the next 25 years an even bigger success.”

Special thank you to NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy and the Van Cortlandt House Museum for their help with the Founders Tree Plantings and for all of their support over the years.

For more information:
Christina Taylor, Executive Director of Friends of Van Cortlandt Park
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 718-601-1460.
Website: www.vancortlandt.org
History and Accomplishments of the Friends: www.vancortlandt.org/timeline
Blogpost Announcing 25^th Anniversary: www.vancortlandt.org/25thanniversary

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