Donations to the Cedar Rapids Parks and Recreation Department have become a popular way to share the memory of life’s special moments and memorialize loved ones. Memorials and retirements as well as other important life events can be shared with thousands of park users for many years to come through a donation to the Parks and Recreation Department. Your donation is actually three gifts in one—a gift to someone you care for, one for future generations and one that beautifies a park area of your choice.
For tree donations, the Parks and Recreation Department will work with you to choose an appropriate location, help with the tree selection and coordinate the planting of the living memorial.
Donations of park benches are also possible. First, your monetary donation is deposited in a special account. The Parks and Recreation Department then proceeds to order, assemble, and install your bench on a concrete pad in a location where it will best serve the public. We will work with you to site the bench and if you decide to purchase a bronze plaque identifying the memorial, we will set the plaque in concrete at the time the bench is installed. Wording on the plaque is approved by the Parks and Recreation Department.
The Cedar Rapids Parks and Recreation Department has been the beneficiary of many types of gifts over the years. These include:
- Cleveland Park, 1st Avenue and 15th Street SW
- Monetary donations
- Picnic tables
- Trees and other landscaping materials
- Topsoil
- Real estate to be held as green space or developed as a city park
- Many other items of value to the department in its day-to-day operations
If you are interested in making a donation of a tree, park bench or other gift to the Cedar Rapids Parks and Recreation Department, Call 286-5760.