GOLD2023

BELLEVUE BOTANICAL GARDEN SOCIETY

Bellevue, WA   |  bellevuebotanical.org

Mission

Through education and community involvement, we inspire all generations to advance Northwest horticultural knowledge, and preserve natural beauty and our local ecology. We perpetuate and further enhance the Bellevue Botanical Garden as a learning resource in partnership with the City of Bellevue, Washington.

Ruling year info

1992

President

Tracy Botsford

Main address

PO Box 40536

Bellevue, WA 98015 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

91-1333659

NTEE code info

Single Organization Support (C11)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Blog

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Through education and community involvement, we inspire all generations to advance Northwest horticulture knowledge, and preserve natural beauty and our local ecology.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Living Lab

The Living Lab Program is a science-based program for children in grades K-5. The program serves local public and private schools and supports the mission of the Bellevue Botanical Garden Society, as well as the Interpretive Plan of the Bellevue Botanical Garden. All activities are interactive, fun, hands-on, and aligned with the Washington State Standards for Science.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth

KIDS IN THE GARDEN is a Science Discovery Program. Designed especially for preschoolers, ages 3-5, our 4-week program will teach kids about the many parts of a garden, from birds to bugs and lots in between. Classes are taught by an experienced preschool science teacher. The curriculum is based on “Growing Wild” and is part of “Project Learning Tree,” a nationally recognized science program.

Population(s) Served
Infants and toddlers

The Bellevue Botanical Garden is a great place for enjoying and learning about nature and the environment. We offer Scout badge workshops for Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and all levels of Girl Scouts twice a year.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth

Our popular lecture series fulfills our mission to inspire all generations to advance horticultural knowledge and to preserve natural beauty and our local ecology through education and community involvement. Our lectures bring speakers from all over the world to teach, entertain and enrich.

Population(s) Served
Adults

We provide a wide variety of gardening, horticulture and environmental classes year-round open to anyone in the community.

Population(s) Served
Adults

Our Docents lead walking tours throughout the garden and answer questions, provide historical details and give insights into the landscape. Docents give more depth to the garden visit. Our docents go through a nine-week training program covering a wide range of topics from botany and plant identification to the history of the Garden. Docent tours are scheduled in advance but they are also on site on weekends to answer questions. Public tours are conducted each Saturday and Sunday afternoon from April through October.

Population(s) Served
Adults

Garden d’Lights features over half a million sparkling lights formed into the whimsical shapes of plants, flowers, birds, animals, and cascading waterfalls set amid the natural beauty of the Bellevue Botanical Garden. This event takes place the Saturday after Thanksgiving through the New Year, 4:30-9:00pm nightly, including holidays. Some nights are free to the public, many nights are a fundraiser for garden programs: $5 per person 11 and over | children 10 and under are free. This volunteer produced event brings over 90,000 visitors to the Bellevue Botanical Garden each season and is our largest public outreach event. www.gardendlights.org

Population(s) Served
Adults

Arts in the Garden is a three-day garden art show featuring art in the natural setting of the Bellevue Botanical Garden. Over 8000 people attend this summer event that increases public awareness of the garden in our region. www.artsinthegardenbellevue.org

Population(s) Served
Adults

Where we work

Affiliations & memberships

American Public Gardens Association 2023

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

Our goals and objectives include: To develop, maintain and promote programs for public education in gardening, horticulture and conservation relevant to the botanical heritage of the Pacific Northwest; To assist the City of Bellevue to develop the Bellevue Botanical Garden into a resource of regional and international renown; to increase public awareness of the Bellevue Botanical Garden and support the City of Bellevue in making the BBG an attractive destination for public enjoyment and passive recreation; to support Garden enhancement and endowment through fundraising; and lastly, to broaden and support our membership and volunteer growth to help reach the goals listed above.

Our Strategies include: Our Education Strategies include offering horticultural classes to all age levels: We offer Adult Education classes annually on a wide variety of topics of interest to gardeners of all levels, as well as 6 top-notch lectures with speakers from around the world. Our Children's Education "Living Lab" program is offered at no charge to elementary students. Our "Kids in the Garden" preschool program for 3-5 year-olds is offered 3 times a year in 4-week sessions. We provide two Scout-Days. Our Docents lead regular weekend afternoon tours and answer questions from visitors around the world. Our Garden Development and Maintenance Strategies include: supporting the City of Bellevue in helping to fund installation of key Bellevue Botanical Garden structures and plantings through fundraising such as our Capitol Campaign. Our Garden Public Relations and Marketing strategy includes our Trillium Store, which serves as both an Information Center for the Garden and a fundraiser. We increase the Bellevue Botanical Garden and Society's exposure through our website and social media, as well as in local and regional publications. Our Fundraising, Community Events and Membership strategies include: Three major volunteer run events a year; raising funds through special events; 501 Common's GiveBIG fundraising event in May, and our annual year-end appeal.

The Bellevue Botanical Garden Society has a very active Board of Directors and involved volunteer base, with over 2400 registered Bellevue Botanical Garden Society Members. We are able to fund 2 full time staff, and 2 part time staff to run our Education, Marketing, and Fund Development programs.

Our Education program offers over 30 adult education classes annually on a wide variety of topics of interest to gardeners of all levels, as well as 6 top-notch lectures with speakers from around the world. Our Children's Education Living Lab program is offered at no charge to over 2500 elementary students from 30 schools each year, additional funding could increase the number of students served in the future. Our Kids in the Garden preschool program for 3-5 year olds is offered 3 times a year in 4-week sessions. We provide two Scout Days, serving about 200 youth a year. Our 33 Docents provide regular weekend afternoon tours and answer questions from visitors around the world. Our Community Events attract large numbers: "Mother's Day at the Garden" with 4000 attendees, Arts in the Garden in August with 7000 attendees, and Garden d'Lights in December, with over 90,000 attendees. We also raise funds through a variety of strategies throughout the year.

Financials

BELLEVUE BOTANICAL GARDEN SOCIETY
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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BELLEVUE BOTANICAL GARDEN SOCIETY

Board of directors
as of 02/06/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Tracy Botsford

Amy Doughty

Robin Root-James

Doris Wong-Estridge

Kathleen Searcy

Chuck Freedenberg

Sara Hutton

Jane Ramsay

Genevieve MacDonald

Nita-Jo Rountree

Carolyn Yuen

Tracy Botsford

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 2/6/2023

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

No data

Race & ethnicity

No data

Gender identity

No data

 

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Sexual orientation

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Disability

No data