ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A fledgling nonprofit dedicated to Allentown’s parks just got a huge shot in the arm.
The Allentown Parknership recently received $500,000 from the Rider-Pool Foundation. The organizations are calling it a “landmark gift” that will establish an endowment to improve health outcomes in the city’s underserved communities, according to a news release.
“Health and wellness are intricately entwined with place."John E. McGlade, Rider-Pool Foundation trustee
That endowment will help improve parks across the city by providing “a sustainable, long-term stream of funding” for the Parknership’s work, said the nonprofit’s board chairman, Simon Moore.
“We also believe its scope will inspire other individuals, corporations and foundations to make comparable donations to support the promise of the Parknership,” Moore said in the release.
Rider-Pool Foundation Trustee John E. McGlade said his organization’s half-million-dollar gift is a “clear demonstration of our belief that the Parknership will positively affect the health of our underserved communities.”
“Health and wellness are intricately entwined with place,” McGlade said. “Access to green space, parks and playgrounds increases physical, mental and social health.”
The father of Allentown's park system
The Rider-Pool Foundation also donated $75,000 to help cover startup costs for the Parknership, which was founded in the spring with a gift of more than $500,000 from the Harry C. Trexler Trust.
The trust worked with city officials since 2019 to evaluate various park models and interview national experts to develop the Parknership.
Harry Trexler is credited by many as the father of Allentown’s park system. After his death in 1933, the businessman-turned-philanthropist donated much of his land to the city to build parks.
"Trexler knew that a city needs...green space, a park...and had the foresight to not only give up his land but to ensure its use as parks for decades to come."Jamie Musselman, Harry S. Trexler Trust trustee
Trexler knew that a city with (so many) residents needs fresh air, needs green space, needs a park,” Trustee Jamie Musselman said at the Parknership’s launch event in May.
And he had the “foresight” to not only give up his land but to ensure its use as parks for decades to come, she said.
The Trexler Trust says it has donated about $185 million to Lehigh County charities over the past eight decades.
