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Do you have news about your park you want to share? email Wendy@providenceparks.org
Due to Rain...Corliss Park Neighborhood Day and Whole Foods Kids Day of Service
will continue on Friday, September 6th
Join Friends of Corliss Park, Whole Foods Market, Sherwin Williams, the Parks Department, City Arts, East Side/Mt. Hope YMCA, Walgreens and more for a park make-over from 9-12 and then stay for a healthy lunch.
Join in the fun here!

The Roger Williams Park Botanical Center Conservancy Fall Fest
October 27, 11-3:30 at the Botanical Center at Roger Williams Park. Children will use a variety of natural materials (such as twigs, seeds, grasses, acorns, and leaves) to create critters, mosaics, rubbings and more. There will be a scavenger hunt for items placed in the Conservatory flower beds. There will be a competition for kids who choose to "Dress a Winter Squash"  and there will be a Storybook corner. For more information, go to RWPBC on Facebook or contact office@bccrwp.org.

Volunteers at Peace & Plenty Park

Many thanks to pastor Derek Bass and his crew from Christ the King Church for helping out with Friends of Peace & Plenty Park in August. We are grateful for all the expertise, skill and dedication you brought to this wonderful park.
The Parks Academy will be back for its second year. If you would like us to offer a class that would be helpful to your group, or you have a skill related to work in and for parks that you would like to teach others, let us know (info@providenceparks.org). We have heard from a number of our groups that a class on oral histories of our parks would be fabulous. We are working on it!
The next Waterman Street Dog Park will be Thursday, Sept. 19, 7:00pm @ Rochambeau Library, lower level.
We will also have a table at the next Farmer’s Market in Lippitt Park, Saturday, Sept. 7, 9:00am - 1:00pm.
Celebrate Providence! Neighborhood Performing Arts Series
    
Pics from the smaller Sights & Sounds NPAI series: Bucklin Park-ACTSA (1 & 2) Brown Street Park-Music for Children (3)  Viscolosi Park-Part of the Oath (4) Gladys Potter Park-Rhythm Room Live (5) Neutaconkanut Recreation area-Joe's Backyard Band (6)
Thanks to all of the parks that hosted a performing arts series this summer. You really helped to bring our parks to life and our communities together. Pictures can be found on Facebook. Thank you to Mayor Angel Taveras, Providence Parks Department, and Art, Culture + Tourism as well as the many community partners and artists that made it such a huge success!

Playful Providence Weekend
The Partnership for Providence Parks and Parks + Recreation, together with Providence Children’s Museum, Kidoinfo, and many other community partners, will be hosting Playful Providence Weekend, September 20-22. Friday starts with Park-ing Day. Check out the Partnership's mini park 130 Washington Street on the 20th, then join us at the Children's Museum at 6:00 for a short kick-off program. On Saturday and Sunday, visit some of our parks and community partners for lots of play and exploration opportunities. The goal of this weekend event is to get families from around the city to visit new parks and try different ways of playing…just for the fun of it. To see the full schedule of the over 25 activities, click here!

Providence Athenaeum Salon
Friday October 8, 5-7pm, SALON, co-presented with the Providence Preservation Society: Partnership for Providence Parks (P3) Director Wendy Nilsson along  with several P3 partners, on “Strengthening and Connecting Communities through Parks and Play,” part of the 2013 PPS Symposium, “Not Always Easy: Building the New Urban Experience.” In 1903, inspired by Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace in Boston, the Providence Parks Department proposed a linear system of interconnected parks and boulevards*.  One year ago the Partnership for Providence Parks was formed to help realize this vision.  In collaboration with the Parks Department, the Partnership cultivates volunteer groups and provides resources to them so that Providence’s parks become vibrant, healthy, playful spaces that reflect the spirit of each neighborhood.  Across the city over 30 volunteer groups and countless community partners are working to transform over 95 parks into community hubs, nature conservancies and places for children and families to play and explore. While each of these parks represents the needs and identity of the surrounding neighborhoods, they are also part of a city-wide effort to physically and socially connect communities through 1100 acres of green space and develop a coherent, cohesive message about how Providence values civic engagement, public/private partnerships, and the importance of green space to our quality of life. More on P3: http://providenceparks.org/; more on PPS: ppsri.org. Sponsor: James Brayton Hall.
*Thanks to Lesley Lambert for her research on the history of Providence parks!

The Color Run!
We are recruiting volunteers for the Playful Providence 2013 finale, the Color Run 5K to benefit the Partnership on Sunday, October 20. We need many volunteers for Friday night the 18th through the end of the event on Sunday the 20th. Check it out!
Volunteer to support our parks by signing up for one of three most unique volunteer jobs in the WORLD!
  • Captain of Fun
  • Packet Pick Up
  • Color Zones
There are a variety of responsibilities depending on how you like to have fun. No matter what you're assigned to, we promise it will be a day to remember!
Please let Wendy@providenceparks.org know if you are interested in volunteering on behalf of the Partnership and what your availability is, or register directly with Serve Rhode Island. Volunteer times and locations will be sent as the event gets closer!
If you have a large group that would like to volunteer together, email volunteer@thecolorrun.com and mention that you are volunteering on behalf of the Partnership for Providence Parks.

Fitness in our Parks
Wow! What a summer to get fit in our parks! Thanks to The East Side Mt. Hope YMCA, Kara Kelley, Yoga Passport and the Mayor’ Office of Healthy Communities for coordinating such an incredible lineup of activities in our parks: Strollerfit, Parkour, RI Street Workout, Santosha Yoga, Ocean State Bikram Yoga, Providence Power Yoga, Breathing Time Yoga, Elizabeth Guardia and Crossfit. Many activities are continuing into the fall. Check out the full schedule here. 


The Partnership and Parks + Recreation to Present at 2 National Forums
This September, the Partnership and Parks + Recreation, with partners from the Mayor's Office of Healthy Communities, Downtown Providence Parks Conservancy, and Providence Children's Museum, will present at the 2013 Playful City USA Leaders’ Summit: Investing in Children Through Play.  We will also be presenting on the Urban Refuge Initiative at the Urban Academy of the US Fish and Wildlife Service in DC. We are thrilled to share our experiences and successes!

Save the Date for Volunteer Appreciation Night
In lieu of a November Friends and Community Partner's Meeting, we will be celebrating your work in parks and green spaces. The Providence Department of Parks + Recreation, in collaboration with the Partnership for Providence Parks, Trees 2020, the Providence Neighborhood Planting Program, and other partners, is planning a celebration to honor the work that your organization has done to improve our parks, green places and tree canopy. Please SAVE THE DATE for Thursday, November 14 from 6-8pm at the Roger Williams Park Casino. Look for your invitation in early October. We promise fun, food, trivia session, “Taste of Providence” munchies, lots of mixing with other groups.... short speaking program. Children are welcome (but the event is geared more to our volunteers). Bring your team. Bring a date! Make it a fun evening out.

Partnership Office is Open
The Partnership office is open at 11 West Drive. If you need meeting space, a place to archive your group's materials, a copier, or would like to borrow some pop-up play materials, contact Wendy at wendy@providenceparks.org.

Google Groups
Our tech Guru, Geoff Meek has set up a Google group so that we can chat directly with each other. Our discussion groups are here.
 You will need:
- An account with Google (Gmail, etc.)
- To request membership to the Partnership for Providence Parks group.
Once your membership is accepted (takes about 1/2 day), simply respond to one of the existing topics, or click the "New Topic" button at the top of the screen.
Using groups is just like using email, with the benefit that all members can view and respond to your messages. The group is also searchable, so you can find out what has been discussed in the past.
If you haven't signed up yet, or are having trouble with it, let Wendy know.

Facebook
Keep sending us your events and pics so we can post them. Oh..please LIKE and FRIEND us. There are some great pics up now of park events and stories in the news. http://www.facebook.com/PartnershipForProvidenceParks

Grants Available
New England Grass Roots Environmental Fund
If you have or haven't applied for a grant through the New England Grass Roots Fund (NEGEF) www.grassrootfund.org you may want to check them out. They are a great first grant to apply for. I am happy to walk anyone through this process. Seed grants are available for new groups and Grow grants for more established groups who may have already received funding from NEGEF. Go for it!

The Partnership
The Partnership for Providence Parks is a new initiative of the Providence Department of Parks and Recreation. The Partnership is a city-wide public/private non-profit 501(C)3 geared toward helping residents and community partners help our parks be active, vibrant, healthy, playful and unique places.
To learn more about the Partnership, please visit www.Providenceparks.org.

 
Copyright © *|2012|* *|Partnership for Providence Parks|*, All rights reserved.