Mill Creek MetroParks Foundation Receives $200,000 in Gifts for the Ford Nature Center Campaign

The Mill Creek MetroParks Foundation is pleased to announce that The James & Coralie Centofanti Charitable Foundation has contributed $100,000 towards the Ford Nature Center Campaign. This gift will be matched by Sand Hill Foundation for a total of $200,000 in funds towards the $3 million project. Chris Litton, Director of Development for Mill Creek MetroParks expressed his gratefulness for the generous philanthropic support for the center. “This gift will have a tremendous impact on our continued effort to educate generations of children and adults about the wonders of the natural world through the Ford Nature Center.”

The Mill Creek MetroParks Foundation launched the campaign for the renovation of the center in July of 2018. Since then, the foundation has raised over $1 million towards its goal and received the matching challenge grant for every dollar raised up to $1 million from Sand Hill Foundation of Menlo Park, California. The planned upgrades will allow Ford Nature Center to continue to serve as the Mahoning Valley’s primary resource on nature education and provide visitors with more hands-on educational experiences in the outdoors through the use of nature classrooms, learning labs and exhibits. “Our goal in renovating this early 20th century structure to a 21st century learning center is to provide a portal for individuals of all ages and abilities to learn and enjoy the natural space in a very seamless fashion,” says Litton. 

The Board of Directors of The James & Coralie Cenofanti Foundation says, “The foundation is pleased to support The Campaign for the Ford Nature Center to future the mission of our Mill Creek MetroParks. James Centofanti, a recipient of the 2009 Volney Rogers Legacy Award for his support of the Park to preserve land, would be pleased to participate in this campaign.”