The Friday Letter | December 18, 2015

The

UGLY Sweater Season Due to the hurendace nature of these sweaters the staff of the Friday letter will need two weeks of recovery.

See you in the New Year

Nature Preserves and Natural Resources Farewell Anthony—McDowell Nature Center: This past Friday, McDowell Nature Center hosted a farewell party for Anthony Shaheen. Anthony has decided to leave Park & Rec in order to return to school to study to be a Physician’s Assistant. Although we will miss him very much, the staff at McDowell is certain that Anthony will continue to do great things and change people’s lives for the better. Good luck Anthony!

Community & Recreation Centers Nature Preserves Inspections: When the leaves are off the trees and a chill is in the air, Natural Resources staff are out and about making routine inspections of our Nature Preserves. The Section is responsible for marking property boundaries, identifying and resolving encroachments, and identifying management needs. These walk-throughs help prioritize management activities such as trash cleanup and invasive species control.

Aquatics Swim with Santa - Ray’s Splash Planet!

37 Children came out with their Families on Friday, December 11, 2015 for our annual Swim With Santa event at Ray’s! Children got into the holiday spirit by making Christmas ornaments to decorate their trees at home, writing their wish lists for Santa to take back to the North Pole, and swimming & playing in our waterpark with Santa himself! Santa and the children enjoyed the blue comet waterslide, lazy river, vortex whirlpool, and even playing basketball. Each child went home with a special picture sitting with Santa at the end of the night. If you missed out on all this fun, no worries, he’ll be back next year!!

For more information about our next Holiday Special Event at Ray’s Splash Planet, please call 980.314.4729.

Community & Recreation Centers Karate Offered at Elon Elon Recreation Center offers karate as an exciting alternative to conventional methods of physical fitness and stress management. Participants are taught the Heishin-Ryu style of karate and will learn how to protect oneself while building moral character and gaining inner peace.

For more up and coming programming information, please contact Elon Recreation Center at ElonRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or at 980-314-1103.

Community & Recreation Centers Smart Start Golf at Tom Sykes: Tom Sykes Recreation Center is starting its’ third week of Start Smart Golf and the kids are developing their golf swings nicely. Their age ranges from 7 to 9 years old. During this six week program, we practice for 1 hour once a week.

During practice, the kids learn how to use a proper grip on their golf club, chipping and putting techniques, and how to swing the golf club. The skills learned in this program will have plenty of value in this lifelong sport.

For more information contact Tom Sykes Recreation Center at TomSykesRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or (980) 314-1113.

Community & Recreation Centers Ivory/Baker Recreation Center: On Tuesday, December 15th the Senior Bridge Club had their annual Christmas Party. It was attended well with over 30 people enjoying a fully catered meal with baked chicken and rice as well as the holiday festivities. After the meal the group made sure to make time for Bridge. The group meets every Tuesday evening at 4:0pm.

For more information: Call 980-314-1112 or e-mail IvoryBakerRecreationcenter@mecklenburgcountync.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Hickory Grove Recreation Center: Hickory Grove Presents A.S.O.P Chess Club Hickory Grove scores big on using critical thinking skills that can help children in and out of school. The A.S.O.P Chess club which stands for Achieving Success on Purpose Inc. brings the community in by providing youth to be a part of a different type of team. This Free program aims to teach the fundamental rules of chess to youth ages 8 and up. While many think it’s all about sports many parents look to other programs that can help improve their children’s ability to concentrate. The facilitator of this program creates teaching moments to help participants develop critical thinking skills and sportsmanship. Research has shown that games like chess improve logic and problem solving. You don’t want to miss out on this opportunity to become a part of a program that teaches life skills, fellowship and encouragement. Join Hickory Grove Recreation Center every Friday from 5pm-7pm.

For more information regarding this program please contact Hickory Grove Recreation Center staff at 980-314-1122 or email HickoryGroveRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Mallard Creek Recreation Center: On Wednesday, December 9th Santa and some of his elves visited our center. Elf Stephanie delighted the children by reading a story, but the highlight of the day was Santa’s entrance to the jingling of bells. The children had snacks and took home colorful Christmas mugs and goody bags from Santa.

For more information: Call 980-314-1121 or e-mail mallardcreekrecreation@mecklenburgcountync.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Sugaw Creek Recreation Center: On Wednesday, December 16th, Sugaw Creek Recreation Center presented the Nadine Smith Memorial Adopt-A-Family Christmas Project. The purpose of the program is to provide assistance to families experiencing hardship. Approximately 18 families participated in the program. Each family volunteered (6) hours of volunteer service for programs such as the Fall Festival, Community Outreach Thanksgiving Dinner, Basketball Pep Rally and more. The families were matched with a community sponsor. These sponsors purchased gifts, clothes, shoes and other needs to the families. Everyone enjoyed the fantastic dinner, entertainment by the Purposeful Praise Choir and band, saxophonist Melita Peterson. The program also featured photo booths, candy bags, and bike giveaways. (30) bicycles were donated by the BicylceMan Community Outreach Program from Fayetteville, NC. The mission of the Bicycle Man program is to take kids from drug infested neighborhood introduce them to positive environment and build confidence, self-esteem and good work habits. Additionally sponsors included St. Augustine University Charlotte Alumni Chapter, Democratic Women Mecklenburg County, Mallard Creek & Myers Park High School Girls Basketball Teams, Successful Learning Academy, The Way to Empower Enterprise, Ebenezer Baptist Club Pack 67, APS Events and Travel, Sugaw Creek Recreation Center “Young at Heart” Senior Club and a host of caring individuals.

The SCRC“Young at Heart” Club and Events Extravaganza provided the decorations and props. The food sponsors included Maurice Wilson, Ella Williams and The Way to Empower Enterprise. A special thanks to MCPRD staff, volunteers and sponsors for their valuable time and dedication in making this a memorable experience for the deserving families.

Community & Recreation Centers Sugaw Creek Recreation Center: On Friday, December 11th, the Sugaw Creek Recreation Center held it’s 7th Annual Pep Rally & Parents vs Coaches Basketball Game. Participants had an opportunity to enjoy a mini basketball clinic, basketball relay games, giveaways and refreshments. The highlight of the night featured the thrilling overtime game won by the coaches. Special thanks to the Johnson C. Smith University Women’s Basketball Team for conducting the mini clinic, operating the score clock, officiating the game. DJ the music, entertaining the crowd with their cheerleading dance routines and most importantly being a positive example to the youth! Go Lady Bulls!

For more information: Call 980-314-1124 or email SugawCreekRecreationCenter@mecklenburgcountync.gov

Sports and Fitness, GCC/ALMS Adult Softball: The Wednesday night Co-Rec Division I and Division II league finished their fall season on Wednesday December 9th. Games were played at Renaissance Park starting at 7pm. A total of four teams competed for the Division I league championship. “Softball Junkies” won the championship this season. A total of six teams competed for the Co-Rec Division II league championship. “Novant Bonecrushers” became the champions this season.

For more information on adult softball leagues please visit our website at www.parkandrec.com, or call us at 704-432-3095 or 704-336-7639.

Sports and Fitness, GCC/ALMS Adult Softball: The Wednesday night men’s Division I and Division II league finished their fall season on Wednesday December 16th. Games were played at Renaissance Park starting at 7pm. A total of six teams competed for the Division I league championship. “Siemens Energy” won the championship this season. A total of six teams competed for the Men’s Division II league championship. “Time Warner” won the championship this season.

For more information on adult softball leagues please visit our website at www.parkandrec.com, or call us at 704-432-3095 or 704-336-7639

Sports and Fitness, GCC/ALMS Adult Softball: The Thursday night men’s Division I league and Co-Rec Wells Fargo League finished their fall season on Thursday December 10th. Games were played at Renaissance Park starting at 7pm. A total of six teams competed for the men’s division I league championship. “300+” won the championship this season. A total of eleven teams competed for the Wells Fargo Co-Rec league championship.

“Uptown Ballers won the championship this season.

For more information on adult softball leagues please visit our website at www.parkandrec.com, or call us at 704-432-3095 or 704-336-7639.

Sports and Fitness, GCC/ALMS Adult Flag Football: The adult flag football league completed their fall season on Tuesday December 15th. Games were played at Freedom Park starting at 7:15pm. There were a total of 4 teams competing for the championship this season. “Co-Ed Beast� won the championship this season.

For more information on adult softball leagues please visit our website at www.parkandrec.com, or call us at 704-432-3095 or 704-336-7639.

5841 Brookshire Blvd.

Charlotte, NC 28216 (704) 336-8840

Recreate All Year!

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Park Partners may contact The Friday Letter Team at Richard . McNeill @MecklenburgCountyNC.gov for publication assistance.

The Friday Letter Volume 4 • Issue 22 • December 18, 2015

CHARMECK ALERTS The CharMeck Alerts Notification System relays accurate and timely emergency notifications. You control how you’re contacted— whether it’s on your cell, work or home phone, via text, email or voice message. You can receive up-to-the-minute notifications about events and emergencies that may affect your home, workplace or other points of interest—anywhere in Mecklenburg County. Sign up here or call CharMeck 311. To receive CDOT-specific alerts, you must sign up for that item in the list.

Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation Senior Leadership Team Jim Garges, Director Michael Kirschman, Deputy Director Renea Barber, Human Resources Mario Chang, Budget Administration Lee Jones, Capital Planning Terri Stowers, Community and Recreation Center Services Jeff Robinson, Park Operations Chris Matthews, Nature Preserves and Natural Resources