August 2013 VRPS Presidents Newsletter

The Virginia Recreation and Park Society Uniting all professionals, students, and interested lay persons engaged in the field of recreation, park and other leisure services in the Commonwealth of Virginia into one body.

PRESIDENT’S NEWSLETTER 2013 Annual Conference From the Keynote, to 70+ sessions, to social events,, to the Expo - there’s a lot happening in James City County Pages 2-4

AUGUST 2013 Around Virginia

CPSI

LTI

Contact Us!

The Service Areas and Resource Groups have ways for you to get involved.

It’s not too late to sign up for the September Certified Playground Safety Inspector Course!

Why should you attend Congratulations to the LTI? Why should you send newly elected board staff? LTI 2014 is coming members. in April!

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Hershey Track & Field State Meet

"We had a great day for the 2013 Hershey Track and Field Virginia State meet on Saturday, June 22 at Western Albemarle High School. The last minute change to the location of the meet worked out very well for all; Bernie Garrison and his staff from Charlottesville Parks and Recreation are lifesavers! Turnout was good as well and we had a good bunch of volunteers working the event.

Thanks for all your hard work in supporting this program.

Respectfully, Paul Berryman, Hershey Track and Field Virginia State Coordinator"

VRPS is Social!

Like Us… Follow Us… Connect with Us… Blog with Us… Watch Us… There’s so much going on and we want you to be a part of it!

The VRPS Hershey Committee: Central District: Justin Bullock Eastern District: Paul Berryman Northern District: Ron Yopp Southwestern District: Eric Grossman Western District: Steve Wood 1

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AUGUST 2013

Water Your Roots for Continued Growth Branch Out...

Take advantage of these sessions to enhance your skill set, work smarter, not harder and learn to set and achieve goals for personal success: Professional Development - How to Take the Next Step Create a Project Plan in Under 60 Minutes Engaged, Empowered, Enlightened Teambuilding for Trainers, Beginners or Facilitators Tips and Tricks for Making Technology Work for You

Break out of your comfort zone and learn something new! Impress your peers and other professionals with your newfound knowledge: Trends in Skateboarding and Skate Park Design Fitness is for Everyone!

Water Trail Development and Management Robotic Legos: STEM Programming at its Best!

UV for Commercial Aquatic Facilities

Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees

Barking Up the Right Tree

Take advantage of these sessions to grow your resources and keep staff motivated while navigating through these difficult economic times:

These sessions share the latest in training, maintaining, managing and marketing, providing you the insight to keep growing:

Engaging Boomer Volunteers Essentials on Motivation: Engaging Staff During Changing Economic Times Developing and Implementing an Event Sponsorship Plan How the USTA can Help you Increase Tennis Using Community Resources and Creating Partnerships

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Training Youth Sports Coaches to be Successful!

Effective eMarketing Maintenance Saves Lives!

Working with the Y Factor: Managing Millenials Weed Control Under Trafficked Turf Conditions

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AUGUST 2013

Go Out on the Financial Limb...It’s Stronger Than You Think!

Explore strategies for increasing revenue, managing resources, protecting assets, cost recovery, and program planning. Take a chance on the financial limbs listed below and walk away with the tools to gain the support you need to grow and improve your services: How to Raise Prices and Keep People Happy Renovate for Revenue Developing a Business Plan for Today’s Recreation Facility Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design Hosting a Holiday Light Show - Strategies for Success Parks and Recreation x GIS The Economic Benefits of Parks and Recreation

Stuck in the Trees? We can Help!

We Speak for the Trees...

This year’s conference provides you with Explore options for improving the lives the support ladder and the rungs listed and personal experiences of participants below to help you come down from the in your communities: trees and get started on solutions to move Bullying Creates a Climate of Fear: you, your organization, and your Will You See it in Time? community forward: From Battlefield to Homefront, the Working with and Hiring an Virginia Wounded Warrior Program Architect Sportsmanship - We Can Expect More Than Just Do It: Experiential Excellence Learning & Debriefing Techniques Disability Sensitivity Add “Super” to Your Vision: Alexandria’s National Safe Place: Effective Ways to Supervise Staff Building a Safety net for Youth in Accessibility in the Outdoor World our Community Play DC - Revitalizing Multigenerational Users: the Silent Neighborhoods and Communities Power Struggle Through Playground

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AUGUST 2013

Dr. John L. Crompton Distinguished Professor Texas A&M University With great pleasure, we welcome back Dr. John Crompton, distinguished professor and nationally renowned author and leader, as our keynote speaker.

Dr. Crompton is the author or co-author of 18 books and a variety of articles which have been published in the recreation, tourism, sports and marketing fields. He is the most published scholar in the history of both the parks and recreation, and the tourism fields.

Learn more at http://rpts.tamu.edu/about/faculty/john-crompton/ Join Dr. Crompton for the Opening Session keynote on Sunday, September 8, 2013, 3:30 pm.

Dr. Crompton will also host the following sessions on Monday, September 9: The Economic Benefits of Parks and Recreation - 8:30 am How to Raise Prices and Keep People Happy - 4:00 pm

Lori A. Hoffner President Supporting Community, Inc. For more than 14 years, Lori A. Hoffner has worked with multiple community organizations, agencies and programs providing information, training and consultation on positive relationship building that supports internal and external customer service, both of which ultimately impact the financial bottom line.

Ms. Hoffner will be presenting the following sessions in James City County: Working with the Y Factor: Managing Millenials - Monday, September 9 @ 2:30 Neighborhood Recreation Facilities: How Staff Positively Impacts the Community Tuesday, September 10 @ 8:30 Multigenerational Users: The Silent Power Struggle - Tuesday, September 10 @ 10:00

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AUGUST 2013

pire w, Ins o r r o ad Tom ay, Le d o T n Lear

Forever

Leadership Training Institute provides participants with the high impact tools and essential insights necessary to become truly exceptional leaders

Leadership Training Institute 2014 April 27-29, 2014 Wintergreen Resort

What did I like best about LTI?...

“Many things. The setting, the instructors, and their subjects that always kept my interest, the format, and most of all, how a group of people who in most cases never met left after 3 days feeling like a big family!”

Don’t delay...Talk to your supervisor today so you can be a part of the 2014 experience!

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AUGUST 2013

Want to Get Involved?

Central Service Area Contact: Aaron Reidmiller - Chair Eastern Service Area Contact: Hugo Morrison - Chair Northern Service Area Contact: Karen Lussier - Chair Southwestern Service Area Contact: Maggie Mace - Chair Western Service Area Contact: Erik Dart - Chair

Aquatics Resource Group Contact: Laura Kowalski - Chair Senior Resource Group Contact: Judy Jones - Chair Therapeutic Resource Group Contact: Julie Townsend

Around

Virginia Southwest Service Area “Play Line” The VRPS Southwest Service Area invites the membership to join them once a month as they discuss trends, hot topics and other recreational opportunities that are sweeping the region and nation. This conference call roundtable takes place the first Thursday of each month at 2:00 pm. Past subjects include Adventure Racing and Youth Athletics. For more information or to suggest a topic, contact Bill Sgrinia or Maggie Mace.

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AUGUST 2013

DCR is offering a low-cost, information-packed workshop on Universal Design for Water Access near the mouth of the James River in September.

Afternoon field trips are scheduled on Tuesday, September 10 (following the VRPS conference). Janet Zeller, author of Canoeing and Kayaking for People with Disabilities, will provide the keynote presentation Tuesday evening followed by a social hour and networking opportunities.

Wednesday morning sessions at Smithfield Center will be followed by a choice of field trips in the afternoon to complement classroom learning. For example, Bill Botten with the U.S. Access Board will lead a field trip to reinforce concepts from his session on 2010 ADA Standards for Water Access Facilities.

Registration is limited, and field trip spots are assigned on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please note that some field trips require an extra fee, and the free field trip to Fort Monroe requires that you bring your own bicycle.

To learn more and register, go to http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=bmfhuxcab&oeidk=a07e7i0thhb9a00df1d

un F n f Sur

Virginia Beach Department of Parks and Recreation -Therapeutic Recreation Programs teamed up with the Aquatics Unit to offer their 7th summer of “Surf-n -Fun”, a surf program for individuals with various disabilities including intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, Autism, moderate behavioral/emotional disorders, ADD/ADHD, traumatic brain injuries, visual, hearing or physical disabilities. This exciting program provides these individuals with an opportunity to experience the thrill of riding a wave or just being in the ocean for the first time. The staff from Aquatics, Therapeutic Recreation, Rec Operations, Fitness and volunteers work together to provide each surfer with a 30 minute session in the water. Whether they ride in on their tummy, kneeling on their knees or conquering the surfer stance, each surfer enjoys their time in water and on the board. Check out these cool pics!!!!

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Learn Today, Lead Tomorrow, Inspire Forever

By Jane Shelhorse Why should you attend the Leadership Training Institute (better known as LTI), or send your staff there? I have attended LTI many times, and whenever I discuss LTI with other people who have attended the program, we all agree it is one of the best programs that VRPS offers. It can be life changing. What is it about LTI that makes it such an important event that I would all it “life changing?” There are three reasons that come immediately to mind.

Thirdly, LTI is a lot of fun. Just watch what happens when recreation people get a chance to recreate themselves (instead of just facilitating recreation for others).

First of all, you have a chance to meet other people in the recreation profession. More than networking; you have a chance to really spend some time and share meaningful experiences over the three days. That’s something we often don’t have time to do while at the annual conference, or during our busy work lives. LTI was a launching point for many of my professional friendships, people I probably would never have gotten to know otherwise. I have even heard of one couple who met at LTI and later got married! That’s extreme networking; but it shows how LTI can be a stepping stone to bigger things.

This year, LTI will be held at Wintergreen on April 27-29, 2014. The early bird fee is $520 for members if you register by September 30th.

That includes everything- workshops, lodging, meals and socials. The only thing not provided is only one lunch. It is money well spent.

I believe in LTI so strongly, that even as the director of a small department I budget money to send at least two people to LTI when it is (it’s only offered on even years). Each time the staff I send comes back saying what an incredible experience it was, and asking if they can go again.

So I ask other directors to look around at your staff, and see which the ones you want to encourage to become leaders in VRPS and in our profession, and send them to LTI. And fellow professionals, I ask you to put in that conference request and work to become a better leader and professional. Join us next April and find out more about how you can Learn Today, Lead Tomorrow and Inspire Forever.

Secondly, and probably most important, the topics presented and the quality of speakers are terrific. These are topics that are always relevant, and will give you insight into yourself, and inspire you to become a better leader. Our theme this year is “Learn Today, Lead Tomorrow, Inspire Forever” and I believe you will leave Wintergreen inspired and motivated.

Registration is open now on the VRPS website

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2014 Annual Conference at The Homestead!

The 2014 Annual Conference is scheduled for December 6-9 at the Omni Homestead in Hot Springs and will be planned and executed by a statewide committee. Committees are now forming and include special events and activities, exhibits, marketing, logistics, education and more! The ’14 team has met to begin the planning, so if you are interested in joining the committee, contact conference chairs Laura McCarty or Cindy Roeder.

Each of you attending the awards banquet will receive a special gift and an invitation to the 60 th VRPS annual conference at the beautiful and historic Omni Homestead. The 2014 conference committee will be on hand to extend their personal invite to each of you to be there for this rare opportunity for a gathering of our colleagues leading into the December holidays.

Congratulations!

Cindy Roeder, chair of the Nominations & Elections Committee, announced the board members elected to serve a three-year term beginning January 2014.

Congratulations to: Michael Kalvort, CPRE Katey Legg, CPRP Margaret Thorne Rita Miller (Lay Member)

2014 President Elected At a special meeting of the 2014 Board of Directors, Art Thatcher, CPRP, AFO, MPA was elected 2014 VRPS President.

Congratulations Art! The 2014 Board of Directors will be installed during the Opening Session/Business Meeting scheduled for Sunday, September 8, 2013, 3:30 pm at the Annual Conference in James City County.

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Contact Us

VRPS Board of Directors President* Katey Legg, CPRP Vice President* Art Thatcher, CPRP Treasurer* Marcy Durrer, CPRP Lay Member* Ed Hamilton, Ph.D Board Member Lisa Cooke, CPRP, AFO Board Member Cindy Roeder Board Member Cindy Messinger, CPRP Board Member Kathy Williams, CTRS Board Member Michael McCarty, CPRP Board Member LaTanya Turner Executive Director* Jim Stutts, CPRP, CAE

2013 VRPS Discount Ticket Program Click here for more information!

* Executive Board

Email the full Board at board@vrps.com Email the Executive Board at exboard@vrps.com

VRPS Central Office 6372 Mechanicsville Turnpike Suite 109 Mechanicsville, Virginia 23111 (804) 730-9477 www.vrps.com vrps@vrps.com Jim Stutts - Executive Director - jim@vrps.com Marlene Bresee - Office Manager - marlene@vrps.com Karen Florey - Office Assistant - karen@vrps.com Nancy Turnage - Office Assistant - nancy@vrps.com

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