The Minneapolis Parks Foundation is delighted to welcome four new parks-lovers to our People for Parks Fund Advisory Committee. Matt Bourque, Jennifer Herman Spiller, Judy Hohmann, and Miluska Novota start two-year terms this month.

As dedicated community volunteers, Bourque, Herman Spiller, Hohmann, and Novota will bring both their passion for parks and, collectively, experience working with kids and youth, as well as expertise in small business law, fundraising, and strategic communications. Here’s more about them:

• Matt Bourque grew up in rural Maine but fell in love with Minneapolis. A bike commuter and runner, he appreciates the parks for bringing greenery and scenes of community to Minneapolis. He works with Rec Plus and believes parks can be a good tool to provide opportunities to local kids of all backgrounds.”
• Jennifer Herman Spiller is a seasoned fundraiser and community leader with more than 25 years of experience working in local and national philanthropy. A native Minneapolitan, she celebrates all things that make our city great – the diverse neighborhoods, abundance of green spaces, culture, arts and most importantly, its community of residents. She and her family have been supporters of People for Parks for close to a decade.  
• Judy Hohmann loves writing about nature and the outdoors and advocating for people of all backgrounds to explore the trails and parks. She writes about that as a Creative Collaborator for Meet Minneapolis tourism and other organizations. Also, she is a university adjunct instructor and a K -Grade 3 literacy tutor. Previously, she headed strategic communications teams at Explore Minnesota, Met Council, Twin Cities PBS, and Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.  
• Miluska Novota is a lawyer practicing in the area of small business finance. Previously, she represented the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District where she served as Deputy General Counsel. She holds degrees from Augustana College, The University of Chicago, and Northwestern University.

The Parks Foundation created the People for Parks Fund in 2020 to carry forward a legacy of community-grown grantmaking throughout Minneapolis parks. In the first two years, we’ve granted over $80,000 to 15 projects and programs, including youth swimming and snowboarding lessons, bird watching for BIPOC adults, Slow Roll community bike rides, and Afro Cardio/Yoga classes, and much more. You can read about these and other grantee stories on our blog Common Ground.

The all-volunteer Advisory Committee guides the Fund’s grantmaking. Bourque, Herman Spiller, Hohmann, and Novota join current members Jasmine Russell (Committee Chair), Jay Halvorson, Angelica Klebsch, Dan Peterson, Jean Sazevich, and Marsha Yang.

In addition to grant-making roles, Advisory Committee members also help plan and volunteer for People for Parks Fund events, like the annual Posters for Parks Show and the Brewery Running Series, both of which raise money to support the Fund.

If you’d like to get involved with the People for Parks Fund, please consider donating today. We’ll begin accepting applications for the 2023 grant cycle in the spring; please contact Christine Moir at CMoir@MplsParksFoundation.org if you would like more information.

—

Featured image: Marsha Yang and Matt Bourque volunteering at the Posters for Parks Show, October 2022