About Us
What do we do?
The Friends of Presqu’ile Park raise funds through many initiatives that are then invested in projects to provide support to the park for services, staffing, and interpretive programs. According to Ontario Parks, The Friends’ contribution since 1988 has been about $5 million in funds and volunteer hours.
The Friends are involved in providing extra services to park visitors during special event weekends such as Waterfowl Weekend; Warblers and Whimbrels Weekend; History Weekend; and Monarchs and Migrants Weekend.
Vision: Where People and Nature Interact
The Friends of Presqu’ile Park view Presqu’ile Provincial Park as a valued and irreplaceable asset that should provide learning, recreational, and conservation opportunities for all. We are an organization that believes above all that the natural heritage of this unique area must be preserved and protected for future generations to enjoy.
Mission
The Friends of Presqu’ile Park will work to enhance educational opportunities for park visitors, to provide volunteer assistance for park activities, to provide funding for selected projects, and to promote the objectives of the park and the Friends of Presqu’ile Park in the local area.
The Friends of Presqu’ile Park will not function as an advocacy group.
Values
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Education
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Environmental responsibility
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Fiscal responsibility
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Transparency
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Volunteerism
We have helped with the structural and display requirements for educational or interpretive activities: i.e., bird viewing stations; the Lighthouse Interpretive Centre; the Nature Centre; and the many interpretive panels throughout the park.
We have funded (over $320,000) the Marsh Boardwalk (completed in 2010) and our volunteer building team did the construction of this very important project (approximately 10,000 volunteer hours).
We have developed: trail guides, children’s activity books, flora and fauna checklists; butterfly books; the deer book; and Identi-wheel.
In 2013, we funded the Jobes’ Woods Trail refurbishment (over $90,000) – removing of the old boardwalk and constructing of the new boardwalk (built to the same standard as the Marsh Boardwalk). Work was carried out by our volunteer building team (approximately 5,000 volunteer hours).
Our fundraising helps to pay for the staff to provide the curriculum-based Kids ‘n Nature School Group Program, attended by over 1500 students each year. We also fund some summer student interpreters and provide volunteer interpreters to support the Discovery programs in the Park.
How do we do all that?
We achieve all this through our fundraising comprising: The Friends’ Lighthouse Gift Shop; barbecues; raffles; special events; personal donations; grant applications; corporate support; and gifts from charitable foundations.
Principles
We Will:
Strategies
Newsroom
Articles and updates from the Friends and the Park
Board of Directors
Roles and profiles of our directors and committee chairs
Bylaws, Policies, & Procedures
Bylaws, policies and procedures we follow.
Annual General Meetings
Minutes, agendas, and details of our AGMs
Annual Financial Statements
Third party reviews of our financials
Awards
Volunteer of the Year, Life Membership, and Student Bursary
Land Acknowledgement
The Friends of Presqu’ile Park respectfully acknowledge that Presqu’ile Provincial Park is located on the Mississauga Anishnabeg territory and is the traditional territory of the Mississauga.
We also acknowledge that the Mississauga Nation are the collective stewards and caretakers of these lands and waters in perpetuity, and that they continue to maintain this responsibility to ensure their health and integrity for generations to come.
