2008 – 2009
Annual Report
East Windsor Parks and Recreation
-Together Parks & Recreation Creates Better Communities-
The East Windsor Parks and Recreation Department is committed to providing an array of programs, events and facilities that cater to the needs of all East Windsor residents. Each season we look to improve on the quality and quantity of our programs. This year we introduced a number of different programs and were a recipient of a wonderful $25,000 matching grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving for a Boundless Playground.
This year we applied for and received a $25,000 matching grant for the construction of a Boundless Playground. A boundless playground allows all children to play without limitations. Children ages 3-12 will be able to play and explore without having to worry about anyone’s limitations. With the help of Boundless Playgrounds Inc. we were able to start the fundraising, and held the design and dream process for Phase I of our new and exciting Boundless Adventure. This playground will be located at the East Windsor Town Hall Annex. This site was selected due to its flat layout and close proximity to many homes with young children. We will be installing the equipment with the help of the Public Works Department in the fall. We look forward to a mid-October opening of Phase I
of this project.
While this was a large park upgrade for 2008-2009 two other projects are still in their fundraising mode. The East Windsor BMX/Skateboard Park Committee has been hard at work raising money for the installation of a Skateboard Park. They have held many successful events and fundraisers. They are continuing to look for grants and donations to speed up the process of getting their park under way. Anyone interested in donating should contact Lori Gabriel at 982-5837. The East Windsor Dog Owners Group has also been hard at work with their fundraising efforts. They are close to making their goal in order to purchase the fencing for the one acre fenced in off leash area. They will be holding many events this year including a Beer and Wine Festival as well as their 2nd Annual Barktoberfest at East Windsor Park. Anyone who may be interested in joining the group or donating should contact Sharon Tripp at 292-1529.
Programming is also a big part of our daily duties here at Parks and Rec. We are always looking for new and exciting programs to offer the residents. This year we teamed up with a new business in Airtime Gymnastics. We are able to offer discounted gymnastic instruction to East Windsor residents. Another program we were able to offer was creating a Counselor-in-Training program. This allows students ages 13-15 to learn the inner workings of a camp counselor with the hope that when they turn 16 they will have a good understanding and experience with working with our summer program participants. Another new and exciting event we co-hosted with Elissa Danielle (Phys. Ed teacher at Broad Brook School) was students from the Broad Brook School participated in the 1st
Annual Walk to School Day. This international event encourages students and parents to promote walking and biking to school. Thanks to a generous donation from BASF, an East Windsor business who strives to support community involvement, we were able to supply both students and teachers with bracelets and educational materials for the event. This event was very exciting and allowed students to walk to school with peers, teachers, town selectmen, senior center members and parents. We look forward to holding our second annual event on October 7th.
During the winter months we gear up for our busy spring and summer season and in addition this winter we moved our office to East Windsor High School. This office allows us to have access to student workers and interact with a new group of residents. Our new physical address is 76 S. Main Street; however our mailing address still remains Town Hall at 11 Rye St. Broad Brook. To help facilitate an easy registration process we have installed drop boxes in all of the schools, Town Hall, and the Annex as well as a 24 hour box located outside our door at the High School. We check these boxes twice a week and hope they will be a convenient option for our participants. Also this winter we were able to offer the annual Carol Sing with the Broad Brook Fire Department and would like to
thank and remember our “Santa” Jimmy Weatherwax who passed away this year. He will be remembered for all the smiles that he brought to the children of East Windsor.
The Parks and Recreation Department maintains approximately one hundred and fifteen acres of parks, fields and facilities. These include seven parks, the largest being East Windsor Park; other locations include Warehouse Point Park, Prospect Hill, Pierce Memorial, Broad Brook Pond, Abbe Road, and Volunteer Park. These facilities, paired with maintaining the grounds and athletic fields at all East Windsor schools, keeps us extremely busy. Our staff does a wonderful job in taking pride in their work to bring an outstanding park program to the residents of East Windsor.
The Parks and Recreation Commission is comprised of five members appointed by the Board of Selectmen and empowered to maintain, manage and regulate parks and playgrounds for both passive and active recreation. The Commission meets on the second Monday of the month at our office inside East Windsor High School at 7 P.M. All are welcome to attend.
While we had an exciting year of programming and park upgrading we look forward 2009 – 2010. Look out for some new exciting additions to our department including an online payment option as well as upgrades to our programs and parks. We will continue to provide the residents of East Windsor many exciting quality programs and facilities because “Together Parks and Recreation Creates Better Communities.”
Respectfully submitted,
Melissa Green, Director of Parks and Recreation.
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