Twelve years after Great Basin National Park was founded, Great Basin National Park Foundation was established by Bonnie Bryan, Nevada's First Lady and wife of Governor Richard Bryan. Great Basin National Park Foundation’s mission was, and continues to be, to support the Park as an institution and treasure of the region so that future generations will can enjoy its wonders.
Since 1998, the Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has raised over three million dollars to help Great Basin National Park. Our mission is to enhance, preserve, and interpret the starry night skies, wide-open scenery, cultural heritage and diverse native ecosystems of Great Basin National Park.
The Foundation's projects include: construction of a new Visitor Center in Baker, Nevada; maintenance of and increased access to park trails; preservation of the cultural heritage of the Great Basin through an oral history project; and expansion of the Park's astronomy programs, which eventually led to the most ambitious venture to date—the planning, building, and oversight of the Great Basin Observatory (GBO). As the first research grade astronomical observatory ever built in a U.S National Park, the GBO is a robotic, remote-internet accessed telescope that allows researchers and students worldwide to access the most outstanding night sky conditions in the lower 48 states.
The Foundation, through its donors, provides needed funds to enhance the mission of Great Basin National Park.