Stihl Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia, will provide a $20,000 grant to a U.S. state park in each of the country’s six regions throughout 2022, totaling $120,000. The grants are a part of Stihl’s expansion of its Hearts of Stihl program, an initiative to care for the environment through the preservation of America’s state parks.
Inspired by the staff of America’s State Parks, the mission of Hearts of Stihl is to help those people and programs that are caring for the parks and preserve them for the enjoyment of all.
Grants will be given to parks in the Northwest, North-Central, Central, Southwest, Northeast and Southeast regions. The grants will be managed by the America’s State Parks Foundation, and parks can apply for funds to help projects related to sustainability, recovery, conservation or environmental education programs.
“For more than 15 years, Stihl has been privileged to support America’s State Parks and this program allows us to expand our efforts to help in the conservation and care of these national treasures,” says Roger Phelps, Stihl corporate communications manager. “Hearts of Stihl is a natural extension of the Stihl commitment to caring for our environment and making it easier for people to work in and with nature.”
For more than a decade, Stihl has been a sponsor of the National Association of State Park Directors Leadership School, providing scholarships for park personnel to attend.
“Stihl Inc. is a longtime supporter of the America’s State Parks, and we are eager to grow our relationship and offer grant funding to the state parks that need it most,” says Lewis Ledford, executive director at the National Association of State Parks Directors. “The funding and resources awarded will have a direct impact on the care and preservation of our state parks and it is our hope these efforts will inspire a new generation to appreciate the great outdoors.”
The 2021 Hearts of Stihl program focused on the planting of 2,021 trees in two western state parks in response to the destruction of the 2020 wildfires. The project featured a partnership with the Oregon and California State Parks; hazardous tree felling and training by professional arborist and Stihl spokesperson Mark Chisholm; Director of Conservation for MeatEater Inc. Ryan Callaghan; and Chuck Leavell, musical director for the Rolling Stones, award winning tree farmer, conservationist and producer of the PBS television program “America’s Forests with Chuck Leavell.”
“Following the wildfires in 2020, Stihl Inc. demonstrated their commitment to environmental conservation, stepping up to aid in our recovery efforts,” says Lisa Sumption, Oregon Parks and Recreation Department director. “The program helped Collier State Park and its community get a leg up in the healing and recovery from such devastating wildfires.”
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