The Chicago Parks Foundation connects companies to parks through corporate responsibility projects. These experiences are unique opportunities for employees to work together to keep our parks clean and beautiful. With over 580 Chicago Park District parks, the Chicago Parks Foundation provides opportunities for companies to give back to communities across the city.

Currently, CPF offers two corporate connection programs: Park Clean-Ups and Bank of America Chicago Marathon Charity Team. The CPF is lucky to work with many gracious corporate partners, this month including LinkedIn and the Motorola Mobility Foundation.

This spring, LinkedIn participated in a corporate clean-up at Union Park. It was a cold and rainy day but the employees powered through to mulch over 80 trees. LinkedIn's Joe Brummitt says, 

"We had a blast partnering with the Chicago Parks Foundation! Our group participated in LinkedIn's 'InDay,' one day per month that employees give back and invest in their communities. The theme of April's InDay was Environment. We thought, what better way to spend the morning than partnering with the Chicago Parks Foundation to clean up a park right here in our community. We loved getting together as a team to make a visible impact with our own hands!

In this day and age, a meaningful and socially responsible workplace is very high on people's wish lists. People want to be a part of an organization which has purpose and allows its employees to invest in the greater good. Through partnering with CPF, our employees were able to feel like they were making a difference in the community we work in every day."

In addition to park clean-ups, Chicago Park Foundation invites companies to participate in our Bank of America Chicago Marathon Team, Team ChiParks. The Motorola Mobility Foundation has 10 runners from all over the world on Team ChiParks this year. From Motorola's Megan Wagner, 

"Motorola Mobility Foundation is excited to announce our sponsorship of Team ChiParks in the 2016 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. At Motorola Mobility, protecting the environment and supporting our communities are central tenets to our corporate responsibility initiatives. That's why our work with the Chicago Parks Foundation is a perfect fit for us. 

By working with the Chicago Parks Foundation, we can make a meaningful impact across all of Chicago's diverse communities and help our urban green spaces thrive. In the months to come, we'll be engaging our employees to volunteer in the parks to deepen our partnership. We're looking forward to meeting the other members of the team and can't wait to cheer on all of the Team ChiParks runners in October!" 

Thanks to employees at both LinkedIn and the Motorola Mobility Foundation, the Chicago Parks Foundation is able to make our mission a reality and continue to support Chicago’s beautiful parks and vibrant communities.