Communities across the Atlanta area are embracing the health benefits of nature.On April 28th, DeKalb County communities joined others across the country in the celebration of Park Rx Day, a day dedicated to bringing people together outside in their parks to enjoy the health and wellness benefits of greenspace.
The City of Atlanta recently advanced a single position to 42nd out of 100 in The Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore index, a move due in part to the increase in the number of residents who live within a 10-minute walk of a park – 66% last year to 71% this year.
Imagine you’re a kid living in an apartment building in an area of town without access to a park. Where can you go outside to play that’s safe? “If the answer is ‘nowhere,’” says Park Pride’s Executive Director, Michael Halicki, “chances are you’ll just stay inside and play video games. We must do better for these kids, and thinking creatively about our public land is the answer.”
Kathryn Johnston Memorial Park is almost complete! View this short video of this transformational park project under construction.
Say hello to Helena Wright, the Community Building Intern with Park Pride this summer. From Newnan, Georgia, Helena is currently a student at Georgia Tech, majoring in Public Policy and minoring in Sustainable Cities and Technology & Management.”The joy parks bring is repaid in kind by the community caring for and maintaining the park.” – Helena Wright
Claire is the Communications and Development Intern with Park Pride this summer, and will soon be transitioning into her role as the Communications Fellow! Claire grew up in Decatur, Georgia and graduated from Davidson College where she majored in Psychology and minored in Environmental Studies.”Quality parks are an investment in the sustainability of communities.” – Claire Weitnauer
“Parks are often one of the only public spaces people feel ownership of, and that sense of ownership can be a powerful organizing force.” – Ruth Pimentel
Say hello to Grace Raulet, one of Park Pride’s summer Visioning Interns ! Grace is currently a 3rd year Landscape Architecture student at the University of Georgia in the College of Environment and Design, with a minor in Spanish and a certificate in Urban and Metropolitan Studies.”Parks are an act of giving back to the earth by replenishing and protecting green spaces, instead of diminishing them” – Grace Raulet
Congratulations! Thanks to your input and feedback, the community-led Park Visioning process for DeKalb Memorial Park, facilitated by Park Pride, has been completed. The outcome is a new, community-supported vision plan, which was presented at the Parkview Civic … Continue Reading →
Welcome to Park Pride, Jessica! Jessica Hayhurst is the Special Events Intern with Park Pride this summer, and we are excited to have her join the team. Jessica is from Cartersville, GA and she graduated this May from Berry College where she majored in Public Relations.”From staff to donors, everyone [at Park Pride] is joined on the same mission to make Atlanta’s parks great, and it’s a team effort to get there.” -Jessica Hayhurst
