The Friday Letter | April 27, 2018

The

Accounting Tip for the week: Please ensure signatures are on Deposit Ticket copies sent to Accounting.

Nature Preserve & Natural Resources Latta Plantation Nature Center Now the weather has finally gotten warmer (well, mostly…) the Latta Plantation Nature Center staff are venturing back out onto the water at all hours!

Staff kicked off the season with an evening kayak tour of Mt. Island Lake, where participants saw plenty of wildlife and a beautiful sunset. The very next week, water lovers sailed out on a sea of stars during a starlight kayak tour. Nature Center led tours of the lake offer opportunities for both hearing and seeing amazing wildlife as well as learning about the history and ecology of the area.

There’s something for everyone at Latta waterfront, with kayak tours, Stand-up Paddle Boarding adventures, and even canoe rentals in the summer!

If you would like to sign up for a tour, you can contact the Nature Center at 980-314-1129. We’ll see you on the water!

Nature Preserve & Natural Resources Promoting the Prairie Anemone Each spring, Natural Resources staff monitor the only natural population of Prairie Anemone (Anemone caroliniana) known to occur in Mecklenburg County.

Prairie Anemone is an early spring blooming wildflower that is listed as endangered species in North Carolina. It had been documented in only a few locations within the state, with the largest population occurring on the property of Back Creek Church in northeast Charlotte.

Natural Resources staff work in cooperation with Back Creek Church to protect this rare species. The population is flagged off each March and a count of flowering stems is conducted during the brief blooming period. The flags are kept in place until the plants die back in late April.

The church supports a preschool as well as the Back Creek Christian Academy which includes students from grades K to 12. The students often make multiple visits to the population each year to watch the progress of the blooms and learn more about them. The plants also get highlighted in the church newsletter.

It’s great to see this population receive the attention and appreciation that it deserves. This year’s count was the second highest on record and we are hopeful that the population will persist at this location for many years to come.

Community & Recreation Centers Special Olympics Swim Meet 55 amazing athletes participated in the Special Olympics of North Carolina swim meet on Wednesday, April 25. Swim meet took place from 10am – 1pm.

Community & Recreation Centers Swim Lottery Registration a Splashing Success!

Even though Ray’s Splash Planet has been closed for renovations, the show must go on…and for us that means free swimming lessons! Thanks to Charles Young and his wonderful staff at West Charlotte Recreation Center we have been able to continue the free swim lottery registrations. All swimming classes take place next door at West Charlotte High School through a CMS partnership.

The most recent registration on April 10th welcomed over two hundred people to the event and registered 106 youth between the ages of 3 to 12. These free swimming lessons focus on water safety and basic swim skills to familiarize young people with the water.

If you are interested in our “Every Child Can Swim” free swim lesson program, or know someone that might be, check out the information at www.parkandrec.com/aquatics or email lindsey.saller@mecklenburgcountync.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Arbor Glen Outreach Center Spring Break Camp The Abor Glen Outreach Center conducted a sports camp for youth ages 8-12 during Spring Break. Each day participants learned the basic fundamentals of various sports through class room lecture, hands on skills and drills along with daily scrimmages. Along with Health and Science from 4-H curriculum “Health Rock�, sports themes included Basketball, flag football, soccer, track, biking and bowling. Safety, teamwork and sportsmanship were encouraged throughout the trainings. Certificates of completion, Olympic medals and safety bicycle helmets were awarded to each camper.

For additional information about this and other programs please contact ArborGlenOutreachCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or 980-314-1110.

Community & Recreation Centers Wallace Pruitt Recreation Center: No Boys Allowed It’s that time again! Wallace Pruitt’s No Boys Allowed program takes place every Tuesday from 6:30pm to 8:30pm as well as every Saturday from 9am to 11am.

This program is for youth girls ages 7-17 and lead by Recreation Assistant Keith Sturghill. This program was created to serve youth girls interested in learning the fundamentals of basketball with other girls who share the same interest.

“Not having the boys around creates a judge free environment where the girls feel more comfortable learning the game and improving their skills” says Mr. Sturghill. This program was a major success at Wallace Pruitt last summer. So much so that with the participate from the program, Wallace Pruitt was able to provide 2 teams for the department’s youth girls basketball league this year. We are always looking to see new faces so come join the NBA! For more information about our programs contact Wallace Pruitt Recreation Center at 980-314-1114 or email at WallacePruittRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Bette Rae Thomas Recreation Center: Indoor Soccer The 7/8 Thunder started off their season with a BANG, winning 1-0 over the very competitive Elon squad. Goal for the Thunder by #22 Jataun Earle and excellent goalkeeping from #23 Mia Earle help seal the win. Bette Rae Thomas is also offering a Summer Soccer Camp starting June 25th- June 29tt for ages 5-12.

The cost of this camp is $55.

For more information about other programs and camps at Bette Rae contact us by phone at 980-314-1111 or email at BetteReaThomasRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Shamrock Senior Center: Loving on Our Volunteers Week Every third week of April is National Volunteer Week. This week is an opportunity to thank all the volunteers across the county who keep many organizations afloat. Shamrock Senior Center has some of the best volunteers around and of course we had to honor them! Each day during the week, our volunteers were showered with love and appreciation though treats, gifts, games, activities, an award ceremony and an ice cream social. Our dedicated volunteers deserve the best and we want them to know that without them, Shamrock would not be able to provide nearly as many services, activities and programs and fun that we do!

For more information about upcoming programs and events contact us at 704-531-9101 or at ShamrockSeniorCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Elon Recreation Center: Track and Field A little fun in the sun is good for the soul! Well at least it is for Elon Recreation Center’s track team. Elon Blazers were in high spirits, on Saturday, as they prepared for their first track meet at Johnson C. Smith University. Athletes were extremely eager to finally be able to compete against neighboring recreation centers. Not only was this an exciting experience for the athletes but it was exciting for their parents as well. Parents were able to see their little stars compete on a pristine track. Participants worked extremely hard each track practice and they were ready to show off all of their skills that our volunteer coaches worked so hard to prepare them for. Elon staff is very excited about the track season and from the looks of things so are all of the track athletes.

For more information regarding youth athletics and programming, contact Elon Recreation Center 980-314-1103 or email ElonRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Tom Sykes Recreation Center: Health & Nutrition Class This week’s lesson in Tom Sykes Afterschool’s Health & Nutrition Class focused on sugar and how it impacts our bodies in both positive and negative ways.

They learned about where we get our natural sugars from and the sugars that are found in popular drinks such as soft drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks which are typically not the healthiest options. To show how much sugar is in each drink, we split the kids up into three groups – Coca Cola, Gatorade and Monster Energy groups. Each group received important information such as the size of the drink in ounces as well as how much sugar in grams is in each drink.

To everyone’s surprise, each group underestimated how much sugar were in their drinks. The Coca Cola group guessed 5 teaspoons of sugar when there are 9 1/3 teaspoons in a 12oz can. The Gatorade group guessed 6 teaspoons of sugar in a 20oz bottle when it really has 9 teaspoons. Lastly, the Monster group guessed 10 teaspoons of sugar, when there is about 13.5 teaspoons! We all did this of course after our physical fitness portion of the class where we had relay races, a six-inch challenge, a wall squat challenge and a plank challenge. We are so proud of our kids! They all did great!

To learn more about Tom Sykes Recreation Center and the programs we offer, call us at 980-314-1113 or email us at TomSykesRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Berewick Recreation Center: Start Smart Track & Field Last week, Berewick Rec. Center finished up our Start Smart Track and Field preschool program. Start Smart Track and Field was the first of its kind for our preschool sports programming. This program was facilitated by recreation center staff every Thursday from 6:00pm-6:50pm for six weeks. In the past six weeks, children learned from staff and parent’s the proper technique of running, doing a standing long jump, and the softball throw all while having fun and learning a new sport. We cannot wait to start baseball next week!

For more information about our upcoming preschool and sports programs, contact BerewickRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or call 980.314.1102.

Community & Recreation Centers Berewick Recreation Center: Earth Day Community Service Event Berewick Recreation Center hosted our 2nd Annual Earth Day Community Service Event this past Saturday, April 21st. This event allows organizations and others to come together to beautify the grounds of Berewick Park and Recreation Center. This year, sixty-one (61) volunteers came out to do various projects; such as mulching, relocating a birdhouse and shrub, prepping the garden beds and planting many vegetables and a few plants, as well as creating a Wildflower Meadow and started a couple of nature trails. All of the volunteers were very eager and worked hard on these projects. We had a station where people could take home provider bush green beans as a part of the Plant 4 Change Initiative.

We would like to thank Karen Howard with Volunteer Services, Ken Carlson, Willie and Randall with Horticulture Services and Stephanie Frisbee with CRCS (Mallard Creek Rec. Center) for their assistance on this outstanding event!

For more information about our upcoming programs, contact staff at BerewickRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or 980.314.1102.

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Community & Recreation Centers Methodist Home Recreation Center: Mini Grillers (International) Our Mini Grillers fired up the grills this week and began their international composing menu that they will be cooking over the next four weeks. The smell of hibachi was in the air as our chefs whipped up rice, chicken and mixed vegetables to complete their Japanese dish. Participants were able to enjoy their meals after working hard. The next 3 sessions will be more fun and more international flavor!

For more information about our programs, events and outreach opportunities, contact MethodistHomeRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or call 980-314-1123.

Community & Recreation Centers Methodist Home Recreation Center: Jessica Locke Meet the newest Recreation Assistant to the MHRC Team, Jessica Locke. She has immediately jumped right in, prepping the MHRC Open Streets 704 activities for this Sunday, amongst other responsibilities. She also works for CMS as a Teacher Assistant. Previously, she has worked for Durham Park and Recreation as well as the YMCA. Jessica is “looking forward to working with everyone and servicing the community� and a welcome addition to the MHRC Team.

For more information about our programs, events and outreach opportunities, contact MethodistHomeRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or call 980-314-1123.

Community & Recreation Centers Therapeutic and Inclusive Recreation Services: Young Adult Day Trippers Young Adult Day Trippers is a program for adults with disabilities to join their friends and enjoy a day of exploring the Charlotte area! Last week, we explored the Four Mile Creek Greenway, had a picnic at Stumptown Park, and watched The Lion King Jr play at Matthews Playhouse. This program offers an opportunity for participants to socialize with their peers and attend fun events in the community.

Carina.Castro@MeckNC.Gov Stacey.Thomas@MeckNC.Gov

Community & Recreation Centers Therapeutic and Inclusive Recreation Services: 50’s Sock Hop Dance On Friday, April 20th, TR hosted its monthly dance at Marion Diehl Rec Center.

This month’s theme was 50’s Sock Hop and everyone was encouraged to dress in their saddle shoes, poodle skirts and cuffed jeans! Participants danced the night away, sang karaoke, and stopped at the photo book to have their picture taken. Next month’s dance will be the Tiki Party.

TRinfo@mecklenburgcountync.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Hickory Grove Recreation Center - AppYOUniversity Program Hickory Grove Recreation Center has partnered with local organization AppYOUniversity, which specializes in a solid foundation of STEM to educate young teens about the high demand for professionals in the field of STEM. The program’s objective is to inspire and empower youth to become the next generation in IT leaders with mentoring parents and youth workshops along with job shadowing will allow these teens to get the full experience they need to become all they can be in the STEM world.

For more information contact HickoryGroveRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or 980.314.1122 And don’t forget to check out www.ParkAndRec.com for other more fun activities county wide.

Community & Recreation Centers Albemarle Road Recreation Center: Sports Management Conference On April 14th, Albemarle Road Recreation Center hosted “Operation Higher Learning� for the Rec Mentees (Recreation Employment Corp Program). The main objective was to expose the mentees to higher education. The Alphas of Johnson C. Smith University kicked the experience off with a step tease in the gymnasium. The day included a college prep workshop, an HBCU college panel, and a local college fair. Representatives from Queen College, Winston Salem State University, UNCC, and JCSU were present. This event was held at Sugaw Creek Recreation Center last year.

For more information on teen programming at Albemarle Road Recreation Center, contact us at 980-314-1101.

Community & Recreation Centers West Charlotte: Spring Break Cheerleading Camp Spring is here, time for cheer! WCRC had a cheerleading camp during spring break for children ages 6-12 years old. Recreation Specialist Phylicia Reshard, Recreation Assistant Nia Sanders and volunteers taught the girls proper techniques, cheers, chants, various jumps, spirit and motions. The girls worked really hard all week and did wonderful at the showcase on Friday! We look forward to working with the girls in the future and having them cheer at our youth sports games.

For more information about our programs here at West Charlotte Recreation Center, call us at 980-314-1120 or email us at WestCharlotteRecreationCenter@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov

Community & Recreation Centers Ivory/Baker Recreation Center: Miles of Smiles Preschool Enrichment Preschoolers from the Bethlehem Head Start Program enjoyed learning to identify and for some, to count their numbers from 1-10. With upcycled cardboard rolls, the activity was enhanced with artistic visuals to aid in the process. To go along with a spring theme, they used a flower number line to identify the numbers. They also used smaller, upcycled cardboard rolls to stack their numbers.

For more information about our programs, please call 980-314-11112 or email: IvoryBakerRecreationCenter@MeckNC.Gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Mallard Creek Recreation Center: Gardening (Plant 4 Change) This week the Little Tykes Gardening class here at Mallard Creek is the first group to participate in the new gardening initiative Plant 4 Change. As part of the class they received green bean seeds which they planted in peat cups as well as extra to take home and plant in a cup. They then headed out to the gardens to pick radishes they had planted before as well as plant lima and green bean seeds.

There will be three booths at Open Streets on April 29th giving out green bean seeds to those who want to participate in the program. For more information contact Stephanie Frisbee at 980-314-1121 or Stephanie.Frisbee@MecklenburgCountyNC.Gov For more information about our programs contact Mallard Creek Recreation Center at 980-314-1121 or email the recreation center at MallardCreekRecreationCenter@mecklenburgcountync.gov.

Community & Recreation Centers Sugaw Creek Recreation Center: Senior Tech Talk Every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month our senior citizens gather to learn about technology and how they can make technology work for them. Some of the lessons of the past include creating online ActiveNet accounts, group chats, online shopping and completing a tech talk scavenger hunt; in which our participants had to find 11 missing items and use their smart phones to take pictures of each missing item and send the pictures in a text message to the class instructor Elliott Richardson. The most recent lesson was learning about the cost effectiveness and efficiency of opening online stores and advertising, versus traditional brick and mortar stores and advertising in newspapers. The next feat will be using social media to plan the Golden Getdown! Which is a decades themedparty for seniors!

Stay tuned for more details!

For more programs, events and outreach opportunities please contact Sugaw Creek Recreation Center at (980)314-1124 or email us at SugawCreekRecreationCenter@MeckNC.gov

Sports & Fitness and GCC/ALMS American Legion Memorial Stadium: Charlotte Hounds The Charlotte Hounds dominated their home opener at Memorial Stadium with a score of 25-7. The Hounds will host two more consecutive homes game before hitting the road for their first road game. Today, August 27th, the Hounds (10) will be hosting the Dallas Rattlers (1-0). Next Thursday, May 3rd, the Chesapeake Bayhawks (0-1) will come to Charlotte to battle the Hounds. Gates open at 6:00 PM with the game beginning at 7:30PM.

For more information on all things Charlotte Hounds, please visit: http://charlottehounds.com/

Grady Cole Center and American Legion Memorial Stadium For information on all upcoming events at the Grady Cole Center and American Legion Memorial Stadium, please visit us at: http://charmeck.org/mecklenburg/county/ParkandRec/Facilities/ EventFacilities/Pages/Events

Sports & Fitness and GCC/ALMS Senior Games The Mecklenburg Senior Games kicked off its first week with four events; a 5K Run (Wingate University), Cycling (Charlotte Motor Speedway), Golf (Skybrook) and Track & Field (Alexander Graham Middle School). This Saturday, the Senior women head to the ball field to compete in a Softball tournament at Park Road Park beginning at 10am.

For more information on our Adult tournaments and leagues, visit www.parkandrec.com or connect with us by email at AdultSports@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or by phone at (980) 314-1117.

Sports & Fitness and GCC/ALMS Adult Volleyball Grass Volleyball is back at Nevin Park. The outdoor volleyball format for this league is free play/round robin for Mixed Doubles. League play began Monday, April 10th and will end May 29th before the two week postseason tournament.

Come out and watch as at least a dozen Co-Rec teams will be in action each night.

For more information on our Adult tournaments and leagues, visit www.parkandrec.com or connect with us by email at AdultSports@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or by phone at (980) 314-1117.

Sports & Fitness and GCC/ALMS Adult Basketball Women’s basketball has a new champion. The Huntersville Hornets defeated the Queen City Swarm 60-51 in the Championship Game of the Women’s League played at Tuckaseegee Recreation Center. The Swarm, who had won each of the previous five championships, lost starter and team captain Tiffany Hoey to injury in the semifinals.

On the men’s side, PCS defeated Mims Enterprises in the finals of the Men’s BLeague. The championship was played at Ivory/Baker Recreation Center. It was a tight game throughout but the veteran experience from PCS played a major part in securing the victory.

For more information on our Adult tournaments and leagues, visit www.parkandrec.com or connect with us by email at AdultSports@MecklenburgCountyNC.gov or by phone at (980) 314-1117.

Volunteer Services/Commemorative Events VOLUNTEER SERVICES/COMMEMORATIVE EVENTS APRIL IS NATIONAL VOLUNTEER MONTH! All this month we’ve been CELEBRATING our wonderful Volunteers and all they do to help make our Parks, Greenways, Nature Preserves and recreation programs the BEST in the land!

Serve as Youth Sports coaches or assistants Help with a landscaping or clean-up project in a Park Tutor or mentor students in an after-school program Chaperone a dance Coach or support youth and teens in Adapted Sports Serve on an Advisory Council Lend a hand at one of our three Senior Centers Help during a Holiday event Care for the environment as Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners or Nature Center volunteers Come out with their school class to Volunteer and learn life skills Plant flowers in their neighborhood Park Or use their time and skills to help in countless other ways!

THANK YOU to all of our AWESOME VOLUNTEERS!

Volunteer Services/Commemorative Events EARTH DAY 2018 was HUGE!!

We had Volunteer projects at Reedy Creek Park, Freedom Park, Briar Creek Greenway, Veteran’s Park, Berewick Recreation Center, Shamrock Park…and in conjunction with HandsOn Charlotte Day, at Park Road Park and Lakewood Park!

There were *hundreds* of Volunteers out in the Parks, enjoying the beautiful day and giving more than 1500 hours of their valuable time to beautify our Parks in celebration of Earth Day! THE EARTH SAYS THANK YOU…AND SO DO WE!

Volunteer Services/Commemorative Events Volunteers in Many Places in April!

This was a big month for group projects! Corporate groups of Volunteers came to Parks in all parts of the County, including: Tuckaseegee, Robert L. Smith, Marion Diehl, Col. Francis Beatty, William R. Davie and Hornet’s Nest to help “wake up the parks” for Spring. An awesome group of students from the John Crosland School came to Renaissance Park to give it some TLC! Torrence Creek Greenway got some special attention…and Latta Plantation Nature Center’s native plant gardens are in great shape

Volunteer Services/Commemorative Events COMING IN MAY: Watch this space for news about Commemorative Events!

We have several Park spaces that will be opened, renamed or dedicated in the coming months‌watch for more news soon!!

For more information on volunteering for any of our programs or projects, or about any upcoming events, please contact Volunteer Services/ Commemorative Events: Karen Howard at 980-314-1046 or Karen.Howard@MeckNC.gov Pamela Thomas at 980-314-1059 or Pamela.Thomas@MeckNC.gov

5841 Brookshire Blvd.

Charlotte, NC 28216 (980) 314-1000

Recreate All Year!

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www.parkandrec.com Please submit all news for the Friday Letter to your Division Director for review and routing.

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

The Friday Letter Volume 8 • Issue 16 • April 27, 2018

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 Lee Jones, Director Vacant, Deputy Director Renea Barber, Human Resources Lorraine Bias, Sr. Fiscal Administrator Vacant, Capital Planning Terri Stowers, Community and Recreation Center Services Peter Cook, Park Operations Chris Matthews, Nature Preserves and Natural Resources