Few private citizens have had more impact on Portland’s parks system than Joey Pope, both as a philanthropist and a super-volunteer. Among her many contributions, the most far-reaching are:

• Holly Farm Park: working with close friend, Joyce Furman, and others, Joey developed Holly Farm in a parks-deficient, ethnically diverse swath of outer southwest Portland — one of the few privately initiated parks in Portland history.

• Hoyt Arboretum Visitor’s Center and the soon-to-be completed all-access Bristlecone Pine Trail for Arboretum visitors.

• Vision 2020: chaired the community task force to create a 20-year blueprint for Portland’s parks system.

• Inaugural chair of the Portland Parks Foundation.

• Leach Botanical Garden: Joey helped it to become the “Hoyt Arboretum” for outer-East Portland launching the soon-to-be-completed $5 million capital campaign for expansion.

“Joey was ahead of what we now call ‘equity,’” according to Zari Santner, for Portland Parks & Recreation Director and Emeritus Board Member of Portland Parks Foundation. “For her, it was a matter of economically disadvantaged people of all races or color having access to parks and all recreation.”

“Joey is somebody who is capable, willing, and interested giving her own money at a generous level, but even more so, giving her time—and for the smallest, most menial task,” says Linda Laviolette, the Portland Parks Foundation’s founding director. “When we were wrapping up fundraising for Holly Farm Park, we collected holly from the farm and Joey made these gorgeous holiday wreaths in her little garden shed. She actually made them! And then I delivered them to the doors, the offices, the homes of the donors to thank them.