Partners

Mission Heritage Partners

Mission Heritage Partners , formerly known as Los Compadres, provides volunteer support and financial aid for preservation, restoration, and development projects at San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. It is the official friends group of the park. Some examples of MHP-funded projects include:

• Masonry Apprentice Program
• Artist-in-Residence Program
• Luminaria at Mission San Jose
• Funding for interpretation, education, and archeology interns

 

Mission Heritage Partners supports many projects in interpretation, education, cultural resources, natural resources, and facilities management. Support from Mission Heritage Partners helps to improve the visitor experience at the park.
Through the generosity of their donors, Mission Heritage Partners has raised more than $4 million to fund historic preservation, protection, interpretation and enjoyment of the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.

 

UNESCO World Heritage Centre

San Antonio's five Spanish colonial missions have been designated a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are extremely exceptional cultural and natural properties nominated voluntarily by signatory nations, which are then approved by the World Heritage Committee. The San Antonio Missions NHP and The Alamo were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site on July 5, 2015.
The designation encompasses architectural and archaeological structures, farmlands, residencies, churches and granaries, as well as water distribution systems. To learn more about visiting important UNESCO points of interest within San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, visit our Park Rangers at the Visitor Center!

The City of San Antonio World Heritage Office offers a free online audio tour to supplement your visit to San Antonio Missions National Historical Park! The audio tour can be found on the City of SA World Heritage Office website. Available in English and Spanish. Check it out on your next visit to any of the four mission sites at the park!

 

Las Misiones

Today the National Park Service operates San Antonio Missions National Historical Park in collaboration with the Archdiocese. The Park Service is responsible for all secular elements of the four missions, including buildings, landscape and visitor centers. The Las Misiones is responsible for the maintenance and restoration of the historic mission churches.

The goal of Las Misiones/Old Spanish Missions is to restore the church buildings to their original vitality by funding and partially endowing (1) the regular and scientific care of the native limestone walls and structures, and (2) the aesthetic and liturgical enhancement of the worship spaces inside the churches. All of this is to be accomplished while respecting the historic integrity of the interiors and exteriors of the churches.

 

After 300 years, the mission sites continue to serve as parish churches. As churches of the Archdiocese of San Antonio, the missions continue to serve stable communities of parishioners and numbers of visitors each year.

 

All proceeds from the bookstore directly support education and interpretation programs at San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. 

NPS Photo.

Western National Parks Association

Western National Parks Association (WNPA) is a nonprofit education partner of the National Park Service. WNPA supports more than 70 parks across the West, developing products, services, and programs that enrich the visitor experience.

WNPA manages the bookstore in the Visitor Center at Mission San Jose. All proceeds from the bookstore directly support education and interpretation programs at San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.