Last updated on September 8th, 2023
San Antonio, Texas-based H-E-B has made a $1 million gift to commemorate 100 years of Texas State Parks. As the presenting sponsor for the centennial celebration, H-E-B’s donation will support programming aimed to engage all Texans in discovering and enjoying the nearly 90 state parks in Texas.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation will launch the centennial celebration, which will begin in January. As part of the Texas Parks, there’s more than 640,000 acres of owned or leased land, which includes 89 state parks, historic sites and natural areas. Among these areas are 11 ecoregions that are home to nearly 800 species of fish, 634 species of birds and more than 4,600 species of native plants.
Along with its donation, H-E-B will support the year-long effort through initiatives such as product releases, cooking tips and in-store activations.
“In a state rich with majestic landscapes, our support of this effort aims to provide access to our parks and the beauty of our great state for all Texans to enjoy,” said Winell Herron, H-E-B group VP of public affairs, diversity and environmental affairs.
“Only a fraction of land in Texas is public land, and it’s our commitment to work with our longtime partner Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation and many other dedicated organizations to protect these precious resources, so Texans can use them for generations to come.”
As part of H-E-B’s “Our Texas, Our Future” mission, H-E-B, along with Field & Future by H-E-B, supports Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation in efforts such as coastal conservation along the Texas Gulf Coast, Black Bear restoration in West Texas and the establishment of Palo Pinto Mountains State Park. The first state park to be opened in North Texas in 25 years, Palo Pinto Mountains State Park is located on 4,871 acres of undeveloped land and is expected to open to the public in late 2023.
H-E-B has contributed more than $13 million to more than 500 environmental organizations in land and water conservation, habitat and coastal preservation and community cleanups since 2012. This includes giving more than $2 million in grants to organizations such as Keep Texas Beautiful, Texas Conservation Fund and the Nature Conservancy in Texas.
Earlier this year, H-E-B joined the How2Recycle program, adding informative recycling labels on more than 2,300 H-E-B brand products to help strengthen recycling efforts in Texas. It has recycled more than 636 million pounds of cardboard, plastics, office paper, food waste, metal and truck tires in 2021.
In addition, H-E-B recycled 54 million pounds of food into animal feed and compost and recycled 17.5 million pounds of plastic. H-E-B’s recycling efforts in 2021 saved the equivalent of 11 million trees, 1.6 million barrels of oil and enough energy to power more than 83,000 homes for an entire year.
For more information on the centennial celebration, including signature events, visit TexasStateParks.org/100years.
