Glacier Conservancy touches all areas of the park

Formed two years ago, the Glacier National Park Conservancy is already having a major impact on all aspects of Glacier National Park.

The conservancy is the official nonprofit fundraising partner of Glacier National Park and has already supplied funding for a wide range of projects from trail maintenance to educational programs to the rehabilitation of historic buildings.

Glacier Conservancy funds 33 projects

"You can't go into the park and not be touched by something the conservancy supports," said Mark Preiss, CEO of the Glacier National Park Conservancy.

The Glacier National Park Conservancy fundraises and provides support to the park.

"The higher mission of the conservancy is to provide fundraising and in-kind support to the park's high-priority projects," Preiss said.

Most large national parks have a friends group that helps fill in the gaps not covered by the federal budget.

"The federal budget provides for the park's day-to-day operations," Preiss explained.

That includes things such as the salary of full-time staff and baseline maintenance.

"What we do is we provide funding to do projects," he said.

Those projects can focus on creating more educational programs, improving trails or aiding in scientific research.

"Those are the types of projects that we provide funding for that frankly wouldn't happen without that public-private partnership," Preiss said.

Those kids of partnerships are crucial for the park, said Jeff Mow, Glacier's superintendent.

"I think it's going to be very interesting with our budgets over time," he said. "We've got some steady increases over the years since 2000."

However, when adjusted for inflation, Glacier's current budget is equivalent, in terms of purchasing power, to its budget in 2000.

Without help from private partners, Glacier wouldn't be able to offer the experiences it offers.

"It's a huge team effort that really makes Glacier what it is and provides those transformational experiences," Mow said.

The Glacier National Park Conservancy essentially serves as a granting agency for the park.

Every year the park puts together grant requests. The conservancy's grant committee reviews the requests and selects projects they believe they can fund. The conservancy then goes to its donors and to the communities surrounding the park and raises funds.

"What's really been pleasing for us to see is the gateway communities really step up," Preiss said.

This year, the Glacier National Park Conservancy is funding 33 projects with $1.2 million.

The conservancy formed in 2013 through the merger of the Glacier National Park Fund, which was the park's fundraising arm, and the Glacier Association, which ran the book stores in the park's visitor center.

That merger was encouraged by the park staff as a way to better support the park.

The Conservancy now runs the book stores in Glacier's visitor centers including Apgar, Logan Pass and St. Mary. Profits from those stores go back to the park, Preiss said.

"Basically their purchases directly benefit the park," he said.

The Glacier National Park Conservancy is already looking at proposed projects for 2016.

"When you look at the greater park need, there's a lot of work to be done," Preiss said.

Support the Glacier National Park Conservancy

For more information on the Glacier National Park Conservancy's work or how to support it, visit glacierconservancy.org.