The Story Behind the Foundation
In 1972, the U.S. Congress passed the Coastal Zone Management Act, forming the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS). In 1980 the Washington State Department of Ecology selected Padilla Bay as the eighth site due to its 8,000 acres of eelgrass beds and surrounding unprotected resources. Each chosen NERR site would have these the four sectors: research and monitoring, education, stewardship and a coastal training program.
Created in 1987 as “Friends of Padilla Bay,” the Padilla Bay Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the work of the Reserve. The Breazeale family, early supporters of environmental resource protection in the region, gifted the family property in 1982 to establish the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (PBNERR). The PBNERR Interpretative Center was built and education programs began to be offered under federal funding. Fundraising activities, membership dues and community donations of land and cash to the Foundation help maintain and expand the facility and its services. The Foundation established the Smith-Aguero Memorial Fund lecture endowment in 1994, and relevant lectures on environmental topics continue to be presented annually to the public. An endowment fund with Skagit Community Fund was established in 2012.
Today the Padilla Bay Foundation’s original three member group has grown into a substantial volunteer force. The foundation applies for grants, holds fundraisers and oversees donations to enhance the Reserve’s mission-driven projects and programs, beyond what federal and state funding is able to provide. In 2020, a touch pool was installed, culminating from years of dedication and donated funds from supporters and businesses.
The Foundation’s vision is to strive to enthusiastically inform and engage the community to conserve our regional estuarine ecosystem. Its mission is to support PBNERR programs by engaging our community and attracting members, talented volunteers and staff who are vital in acquiring valuable supplemental resources. In support of this vision and mission, we welcome volunteers, members and supporters to engage with us in this important work!
Coast Salish Peoples Land Acknowledgment
We remember and acknowledge that we are on land of the Coast Salish Peoples, whose land and resources were involuntarily ceded. The Coast Salish People protected and stewarded this land, water and nature for thousands of years. It is important that when we come together, we take a moment to reflect and remind ourselves of this truth.
It is critical for the survival of all of us and our Earth to have a clear understanding of how settler colonialism destroys people, culture and the environment. It is only through an understanding and appreciation of this history that we can act to prevent the further decimation of Indigenous people, culture and wisdom from these lands. We are committed to elevating Indigenous voices and priorities into spaces, conversations and decisions from which they have been regrettably absent, excluded and even unwelcomed.