NRPS Newsletter October 2011

The Nevada Recreation and Park Society (NRPS) got its roots in the

year 1955. A small group of dedicated individuals from agencies

throughout Nevada met in Reno to establish the state's first

organization dedicated to the advancement of the recreation, parks,

and leisure professions. Though spirited and earnest, this early effort

was short-lived, ceasing to function in three years' time. After several

years of discussion and organizational meetings, NRPS was

reactivated by a group of seventeen professionals who met in Las

Vegas in 1963. NRPS gained affiliation with the National Recreation

and Park Association (NRPA) in 1964. NRPS has been actively

supporting the development of the recreation, parks, and leisure

professions from that year forward. The Society filed articles of

incorporation with the State of Nevada in March 1974.

NRPS is divided into north and south districts. The NRPS Executive

Board is elected by the Society's membership. The Society annually

awards academic scholarships, program and facility excellence awards,

and recognizes in-state distinguished professionals with various

awards, the most coveted of which is the "Dundee Award“.

Throughout its history, NRPS has consistently contributed regionally

and nationally distinguished leadership to a multitude of professional

organizations. The cities of Reno and Las Vegas have both hosted the

NRPA National Congress and NRPS has committed to annually offer a Certified Playground Inspector Course.

Welcome all NRPS Members to another edition of our Newsletter: I hope you had a safe and successful summer program and are off to another successful fall programming season. Fall is a great time to get out and enjoy one of the many outdoor recreation amenities available in Nevada. A couple of great events that I was able attend recently were Henderson’s National Trails Day and Clark County’s Renaissance Festival. They were both great events. Your society is also helping to make “More for Members” a reality. We are currently working to bring back the NRPS Magazine and we should able to have an updated website soon. These are all designed to help provide greater interaction and information for our membership. I hope you will have a chance to participate in one of our upcoming NRPS events. Thank you for all your help and I hope to see you out and about at one of our functions. Dirk Richwine, President Nevada Parks and Recreation Society

President-Dirk Richwine, CPRP

Past Pres.-Sven Leff, CPRP Pres. Elect-Jayne

Mazurkiewicz, CPRP Vice Pres. North-Al Rogers Vice Pres. South-Daniel

McLean Secretary-Sarah Johnson Treasurer-Brady Dehn Members At Large North-

Pandora Bahlman Jennifer Budge Joel Dunn Danny Gleich

Members At Large South-

Nate Jaramillo Nick McLemore Jeannette Palmer Felicia Rivera-Baker

PSP North-Johnathan

Skinner PSC North-Linda Fearnley PSP South-Shelly Gulotta PSC South-Dundee Jones

The NRPS Aquatic Committee is made up of aquatics professionals throughout the southern Nevada area.

Members meet the 2nd Wednesday every other month to discuss aquatic trends, programming, staffing, operations and hot topics.

In addition, the committee organizes several events throughout the year; Health & Safety Expo, Southern Nevada Lifeguard Games and a Recreational Swim Meet.

Please visit our contact page on NRPS.org if you would like to contact our board members to receive additional information on any of our events, attending a meeting or becoming a member.

Board Members 2011

Jessica Laguna, Past Chair Brady Dehn, Chair Trevor Snow, Vice Chair Ericka Taggart, Secretary Dave Castle, Treasurer

Training Opportunity

Training Opportunity

12/3/11

• CPRP Prep Course

• Black Mountain Recreation Center

• 10:00am-12:00pm

Coming Soon!

• Kick off NRPS Action Advocacy Network

• Look for details in the next newsletter!

12/29/11

• The After Christmas Before New Year’s Party

1/19/12

• Happy New YOU!

• Location TBA

• 11:30am-1:00pm

What is your earliest memory of Parks & Recreation?

Both-Going to gymnastics at the old Henderson youth center.

What is one things that makes you smile?

Valerie- M y kids-John, Aden, & Aubrey.

M elanie- M y three boys- M ason, Logan, and Preston.

What is something you can’t live without?

Both-Sushi and chocolate, but not together!

N ame three people you would like to have dinner with and where?

Valerie- Rhianna, Simon Cowell, & Ellen Degeneres at the White House.

M elanie- M y husband, the lead Singer of Rascal Flats (if he sings to me), and

Temple Grandin at wherever Temple chooses,. hopefully she likes I taly!

What M otivates you to stay in the Parks & Recreation field?

Valerie- M y staff, peers, and community.

M elanie- Our field is great for families and offers a lot of opportunities to stay

active.

The 2012 NRPS conference is on the horizon. We encourage all members and local professionals to join us at conference and even assist in the planning process. If you would like to assist with a committee, please email

Jayne.Mazurkiewick@cityofhenderson.com or gulottms@co.clark.nv.us.

Conference Committees & Chairs:

*Speakers/Education- Dirk Richwine & Jessica Laguna *Playground Safety Institute-Felicia Rivera-Baker *Exhibitors-Shelly Gulotta & Doug Guild *Fundraising- Sarah Johnson *Registration-Jeannette Palmer *Socials/Food-Nate Jaramillo *Technology/Logistics-Nick McLemore

Advocacy is a process of

strengthening public and political

understanding and commitment to

public parks and recreation.

Advocacy involves finding ways to

tell stories about parks and

recreation and how it benefits our

communities.

In Nevada we have seen a decline

in support for parks and

recreation at all levels.

Coming to an Agency Near You: The NRPS Agency Survey

Ever wonder what other Nevada cities and counties are doing in their parks and recreation programs? How about what types of facilities they have? Or attendance at parks and recreation activities. You are about to find out. The Nevada Recreation and Park Society is embarking on a project to gather this type of information and much more. Nationally the National Recreation & Park Association, the Trust for Public Lands, and the National Association of State Park Directors individually gather such information. Such information is valuable, but each organization has a different focus and set of criteria. Many state associations also gather this type of information. Nevada has not been one of those states. That is about to change. In the next few weeks a on-line questionnaire will be distributed to every park and recreation agency in Nevada. The questionnaire, modeled after the Trust for Public Lands questionnaire and several state questionnaires has been reviewed by the NRPS Board and a committee in an effort to ensure we secure relevant and useful information. Questions in the survey relate to financial resources and expenditures, types of facilities, staffing levels, types of areas, trails, parks, the urban forest, use of parks, attendance at recreation programs, and more. The results will allow NRPS to do a better job of representing city, county and state park and recreation organizations to the state legislature and to our local constituents. The development and implementation of the questionnaire is part of the NRPS Advocacy effort to prepare ourselves for the next legislative session. Initially, several reports on the state of parks and recreation in Nevada will be produced. The data will be available for use by local agencies to share with the boards, elected representatives, and public. The timeliness of the survey is important to park and recreation agencies and the residents of Nevada as we prepare for a new future in parks and recreation.

Staff at the Stupak Community Center decided it was time to try something new

yet familiar for the kids in the Meadows Village neighborhood, and the Stupak

Soccer Academy was born. With Sherry Alexander taking the lead, we received

a scholarship from the US Soccer Foundation and Nestle Pure Water, and were

given 300 soccer balls, bottled water, snacks, and shirts. Albertsons supplied

team uniforms and banners while All Points Media has agreed to fund next

year’s program.

Charging just $10 and using Academy style scheduling, staff held 3 practice

sessions and started play on Monday, September 19. Practice is held

Thursdays from 4:00-5:30pm and games are played on Mondays starting at

5:00pm. 40 K-6th graders signed up for co-ed play. Members of the Stupak teen

programs volunteer as coaches, referees, and administrative personnel. They

are responsible for checking parents and players in, coaching the teams, and

officiating the games. In turn, the teens are not only having fun and having a

positive impact on their community, they’re learning valuable leadership skills

and acting as role models for the K-6th grade players.

The Academy style format that we use allows a single staff person (Sherry) to

run the program with the help of the teen volunteers. We can accommodate up

to 80 kids by playing 4v4 in the gym on half court. Players are divided into 4

teams and play (2) 10 minute halves. They are then “re-shuffled” and with new

teammates and a new coach, play a second game. This style helps the kids

learn how to deal with winning, losing, different coaching styles, playing with

friends, playing against friends, and working with others that they may not

normally team up with.

Sherry was also able to obtain donations and grant funding for several teens to

become certified referee’s. Since she is a licensed youth referee instructor she

will train the teens, and then we will pay for their certification and outfit them with

all of their referee supplies - (bag, uniform, whistle, flags, socks and watch)

using the aforementioned donations and grant funding. Teens that pass the

course will then be able to officiate Academy games on Monday

evenings. Sherry took it one step farther and contacted a local Youth Soccer

League who plan to hire our teens to referee their games on Saturdays.

The Stupak Soccer Academy is truly a win-win situation. Not only are 40+ K-6th

graders learning soccer basics, our teens are gaining valuable experience on

many levels, and once certified will be able to obtain weekend employment

officiating youth soccer games in the Las Vegas valley.

City of Las Vegas in Action!

Nathaniel Jaramillo

SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, Deadline: Dec 1. $5K to $25K to support wildlife research & habitat protection & education projects. Info & app: http://www.swbg-conservationfund.org/grantInfoA.htm

National Alliance for Accessible Golf for Individuals With Disabilities, Deadline: Rolling. Up to $20K to provide golf programs for individuals with disabilities. Info & app: http://www.accessgolf.org/grants/alliance_grants.cfm

Grant Opportunities

Grant Opportunities

If enthusiasm counts for anything at all, things should soon get very interesting over at Santee Lakes. There’s a new guy at the controls there, and he’s got a world of experience and some very good ideas about the future of the Lakes and the recreation district around them. Jonathan Skinner arrives as the Director of Parks and Recreation at Padre Dam's crown jewels from a supervisory position with the city of Reno, NV, and behind that, 30 years of experience in recreation-related programs all over Southern California. Some people fall into careers like that, maybe as a result of something else. Not Skinner. He was headed this way from the start. “I started working in this field early on. I knew from the start this is what I wanted to do”, Skinner says. “I went from Lompoc High School to Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, and the on to Cal State Northridge for my bachelor’s degree, and eventually wound up with a Master’s degree in public administration”. While doing that, Skinner continued to work and build experience at a number of cities and special districts all over Southern California. From there to Incline Village, Nevada, then on to Reno, and now to Santee. “I knew this would be a good experience, because I did a lot of research, and what I found out is that Santee Lakes and the Recreation district is very innovative. I could learn a lot here, and hopefully accomplish a lot for the District.”

Skinner cited the new cabins for rent at the Lakes as just one of many things the Park has done over the recent years to compete for the entertainment dollar- and he makes no bones about the fact that Santee Lakes IS in competition for the dollar. “We have to draw people here. We have to provide them with an experience here at Santee Lakes that will not only make them want to come back, but to bring their friends and families here as well.” This is a bit more of a challenge than it might have been at the cities Skinner worked at in the past. When you run into budget problems working for a city, there’s always the ability, or at least the temptation, to go to the city for money to make up your budget shortfall. That is not an option here. “We exist on what comes through the gate. We don’t get a penny from Padre Dam ratepayers, for any reason. If we need something, and there isn’t money in the Lakes Foundation bank account, then we do without until there is money in the bank, or we improvise.” Last year, $3.8 million came in through that gate and $2.5 million went right back out for the cost of running the operation. “The remaining $1.3 went into improvements to the park around the Lakes, and there are always things that need to be fixed- the boats, the playground equipment, you name it, and it breaks or wears out.” Skinner is spending much of his time outside the park, talking to any groups that are willing to hear his message. His job involves selling the Lakes and the park as much as it does operating the Lakes and the park, and he knows it. He and his son are living a split existence right now. They’re living in Santee, where his son is already in school, and active in Pop Warner football, while his wife and daughter stayed behind in Reno, so his daughter could finish her senior high school year in the same school.

Drop by the Lakes and talk to Skinner if you get the chance. Or, you might drop by and volunteer at the park. Skinner is clear about the fact that he couldn’t really run the park without his corps of volunteers, and he appreciates them greatly. Too bad Jonathan and I are separated by some 20 years- if we weren’t, we probably would have met on the football field or the basketball court- he playing for Lompoc High, and me playing for arch-rival Santa Maria High. I told him we used to beat Lompoc like a drum when I was in high school- he told me the same thing about what his school used to do to us. Wonder which one of us is right... Article courtesy of :

Nominations are currently being taken for a new Pacific Southwest

Professional-North. Please contact Dirk Richwine with your

suggestions.

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