Parks Foundation Names New Exec. Director
The Foundation for Geauga Parks Board of Trustees recently chose Christine Davidson to step into the role of executive director.
The Foundation for Geauga Parks Board of Trustees recently chose Christine Davidson to step into the role of executive director.
Davidson — who has 15 years of senior management, strategic development and plan execution experience — will manage the day-to-day operations and serve as the external face of the foundation to the community at large said board President Eric Sukalac in a statement, adding Davidson also has decades of nonprofit experience as a board member, volunteer and most recently, as director of operations for the Chagrin Documentary Film Festival.
“I am delighted to join the Foundation for Geauga Parks and work with such a talented and engaged board of trustees,” Davidson said in a statement. “I am eager to build on the momentum of the foundation’s programs and relationships with partner organizations to grow the foundation and maximize the impact of our collective endeavors.”
Davidson will direct advancement activities, develop strategic relationships and networks with Northeast Ohio organizations, and bolster relationships with donors and sponsors to support the foundation’s philanthropic work and further its mission, Sukalac said.
“Christine is the right leader for the foundation,” he said. “Christine comes to us with a great deal of operations experience and connection into Geauga County. Our Selection and Governance Committees put a lot of work into finding the best candidate to help move our organization forward. We’re all very excited to welcome Christine to the foundation.”
FGP is an independent nonprofit organization that provides funding and grants for projects and programs that focus on preservation, conservation, education and fostering community engagement with Geauga County’s natural assets. Established in 1990, the FGP has been largely responsible for some of Geauga County’s transformational successes in land conservation and nature education, providing a significant source of private funding for The West Woods, The Rookery and Observatory Park, according to the organization.
In recent years, FGP expanded the scope of its mission to also support Geauga County’s township parks and it has a long history of collaboration with Geauga Park District and other organizations that have led to unique and successful programs, according to the group, which added it is the primary source of funding for Nature Scopes, the first binocular-nature education program of its kind in the country in which Geauga County’s fifth-graders from both public and parochial schools participate.
FGP initiated the Pollinator Program in 2019 to promote education about the importance of protecting pollinator habitats and in October of 2022, in collaboration with the park district, a pollinator “Play” Garden was installed and commissioned in Frohring Meadows, providing kids of all ages the hands-on ability to engage with nature and learn about the benefits of protecting pollinator habitats, according to the organization.
FGP also collaborated with multiple organizations to create the Geauga Skywatchers, an astronomy club that provides telescopes for check-out from area public libraries in addition to offering educational activities in astronomy, geared toward grades six through 12.
For more information, contact the foundation office at 440-564-1048, admin@foundationforgeaugaparks.org or foundationforgeaugaparks.org.
