City of Barnwell

A STORY OF REBUILDING, RESURGENCE & REJUVENATION

By: Brandon Staton, City of Barnwell Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Director

The story of the fall of 2021 for the Barnwell Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Department has been one of rebuilding, resurgence, and rejuvenation. It’s no odd coincidence that, at the same time SCRPA magazine runs stories related to starting up or starting over, that Barnwell brings on a first-time director, opens a new playground and splash pad play area, and reintroduces fall sports into the community. On August 12, 2021, Barnwell City Council appointed Brandon Staton (left) as the interim PRT Director, immediately being tasked with bringing tackle football back to the department, while also having flag football and volleyball for the fall. He thanked his lucky stars for a background in football, having played for the same recreation department, at the local high school, and into college. He called upon former knowledge of how things had been run in the past because he began his employment as a park attendant for the city in 2018 before moving into a different role for the city of Barnwell. This new task, as challenging as it was by itself, didn’t come without added hurdles. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Barnwell had been without fall athletics for some time, but the community welcomed him with open arms and jumped at the chance to see their youth play football, volleyball and cheering once again. On top of bringing fall sports back, the PRT Department was close to unveiling and holding the grand opening of the new Fuller Park playground and splash pad area. In front of a small crowd of citizens, reporters, city employees, who had helped with the project, and councilmen and women, a group of local youth cut the ribbon to officially open the park. Fresh green sod surrounding the play areas stretching from one end to the other, a refurbished farmers market stand, and new public utilities that had been worked on by local tradesmen and businesses brought a rejuvenated look to Barnwell’s historic park. Though these tasks have seemed daunting at times, Barnwell has responded with overwhelming support for the direction the department is heading in. Numerous praises have filled the department’s Facebook page and a significant amount of positive messages have been received on how the department is handling the turning of a page.