Town of Pittsford, Vermont

PITTSFORD RECREATION DEPARTMENT
Recreation Director’s Report 
January 10, 2005

            Happy New Year! Can you believe its 2005 already? Last year proved to be another productive year for the Recreation Department. I’m pleased with the programs that Recreation Department offered and the improvements we’re able to make at the Recreation Area. Replacing the old and unsafe playground equipment at the Recreation Area had to be the highlight of the year for our department. On May 1, 2004, over 25 volunteers worked diligently to erect a modern play structure that meets the latest safety and ADA requirements. The new play structure is physical proof of what great things can happen when people pull together to achieve a common goal. The play ground has been a wonderful addition and children seem to enjoy it very much.

            On Friday, January 7, 2005, at the VT Police Academy, the Recreation Department co-sponsored with the Maclure Library the first “Family Fun Night” of the year. The theme for the evening was “Magic Kingdom”. Children made crowns and magic wands out of construction paper and decorated them with “jewels” and beads at the craft tables. The main attractions were “Joey’s Bounce Houses” where kids were able to hop around in inflatable “bounce houses” until their hearts were content. Children were able to burn through built up energy they were storing by running and hopping around the gym. The only negative feedback that I have from this event is that neither the Recreation Department or the Maclure Library could find any volunteer support staff to help during the event, which left basically myself and the Children’s Librarian Lynn Hughes responsible for the approximately 110 people who attended, and because Librarian Bonnie Stewart wasn’t able to attend the event I had no help picking up after the event.

            Youth Basketball for grades 1^st – 4^th started practicing on Saturday morning, January 8, 2005. We had an outstanding number of children register to participate in this program. There are 25 boys & girls who are playing in the 1^st/2^nd grade group, which is almost over whelming in itself. There are 14 3^rd/4^th grade boys participating and finally 12 3^rd/4^th grade girls who are giving their all. Coaching for us this winter is Melissa Parker-Tripp who is working with the 1^st/2^nd grade group. Helping her is Alexis Breen an 8^th grader at OV and Katie Reisterer a freshman also from OV. Mark Poljacik is coaching the 3^rd/4^th grade girls, and last but not least Matt Levandowski is the coach of the 3^rd/4^th boys team. The Recreation Department is fortunate to have dedicated individuals involved in our programs. I appreciate time and effort that each and every one of these individuals gives to the Recreation Department. (Note: One observation I’d like to make is that at the first morning of the program I had 3 or 4 parents arrive with their registration forms in hand hoping to register their child for the program. I certainly don’t mind letting these families register late, when there is room in the program, but in this case the 1^st/2^nd grade group was getting very close to being full. I’m thinking about either adding registration deadlines to each class and begin charging families for registering late or just charging a surcharge to those individuals who want to sign-up at the first class.)

            It was very interesting to see how participation numbers fell for the Aerobics/Kickboxing program during the month of December. Like I suspected the numbers dropped significantly around the holidays a time when everyone is so busy trying to get everything done. This was the first time that I have offered the Aerobics/Kickboxing program during the month of December, certainly it will be a good lesson learned. However the flip side is the program has already begun to rebound strong with 10 individuals participating in the January 4^th class.

            I’m happy to report for the third winter in a row that the Recreation Department is sponsoring our after school “Safe Sitter” class for those 11 – 13 years old who are interested in learning the skills needed to become “Safe Sitters”. During the 12 hour interactive program participants will learn in a fun and supportive atmosphere about child care essentials, injury prevention, behavior management, and rescue breathing. “Safe Sitter” is an internationally recognized program that is taught through Health Wise @ Rutland Regional Medical Center.

Programs of Interest:

            - Friday, January 14                    Open Gym/Movie/Pizza Teen Night

            - Tuesday, January 18                    Adult Computer Class-P/C Basics

            - Tuesday, January 25                    Adult Computer-Setting Up & Using E-Mail

            - Friday, February 4                   Family Fun Night-Winter Wonderland

            - Friday, February 11                 Valentine’s Day Teen Dance

            - Saturday, February 19            Moonlight Skiing/Snowshoeing/Sledding Event

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