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New York Restoration Project

by Kimberly Potts (see more from this contributor)

By: Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated singer and actress Bette Midler
Founded: 1995
Why: Midler wanted to revamp abandoned parks in New York City's most economically downtrodden neighborhoods.
Fund-raisers: The annual Harlem River Festival, a spring picnic event and Midler's annual "Hulaween" costume ball. The NYRP also opened the New Leaf Cafe in Upper Manhattan's Fort Tryon Park; the critically acclaimed restaurant is open to individuals and group events like weddings. In fact, actor Laurence Fishburne and actress Gina Torres were married at the New Leaf in 2002.
How's it doing? The NYRP has restored city parks like Fort Washington Park, Fort Tryon Park and Highbridge Park; removed more than 850 tons of garbage from parks around the city; provides community programs like field walks and bicycling; and even created Swindler Cove Park, a new park on the banks of the Harlem River at a site that was once an illegal dump.
Bette says: "When I moved to New York, I was very disappointed in how parts of the city looked. I was so upset I didn't sleep for weeks... People were throwing their garbage out the window, leaving their lunches on the ground... Finally, I realized I needed to do something — even if I had to pick up the stuff with my own two hands."
You can give to: NYRP.org

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