February 2012 - Parks & Recreation - 60

V O LUNTEER S P O TLI G HT

Jennifer Harnish

" Citizens are ideal for educating legislators. "

ennifer Harnish is Chair-Elect of the NRPA Citizen Network. She
has attended the Legislative Forum in Washington, D.C., for the past
five years as a member of the Texas Recreation and Park Society. She
is a former chair of the Fort Worth Parks Board and continues to be active in
related nonprofits groups. Her career is not in the parks and recreation field,
but rather as the technology director for an elementary school, educating
teachers in the use of technology for the classroom.

Why do you believe it is important
for citizens to engage in advocacy
at the national level?
'All politics is local' is a phrase I have
learned the truth of through my advocacy efforts at the national level. Legislators
become our neighbors when they return
home to our communities; and these communities are " home " because of a certain
quality of life. Parks and recreation contribute directly to these livable communities;
and citizens are ideal for educating legislators on the local benefits of parks, recreation, and open space-often developed
with assistance from federal funding.
As a constituent who appreciates that
parks really do build community, I volunteer to share with my lawmakers the immense value and examples found back
home. Fort Worth recently received a
$5-million federal Transportation Enhancement grant. Leveraging these funds
with matching support from some great
local partners will develop five projects,
primarily hike and bike trails. The value
that parks and recreation have for people
and communities can go largely unrecognized without this continual dialog.
How can citizens get energized to
be active and make their voices
heard?
Two words: social media. Join the discussion to promote parks and recreation. NRPA is active on Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, you name it-
so friend, follow or share NRPA. The larger

58 Parks & Recreation F E B R U A R Y

the discussion, the louder it
becomes.
Embrace America's Backyard. This grassroots effort
showcases the important role
of parks and recreation in
American life-health, physical fitness and fighting obesity, economic development,
environmental preservation,
and community vitality. America's Backyard gives a collective voice to the message that
parks are vital and need adequate investment.
Margaret Mead once said,
" Never doubt that a small
group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the
world; indeed, it's the only
thing that ever has. "
What advice do you have for other
NRPA citizen advocates or
volunteers?
As a citizen advocate, one role is to educate. Offer to be a resource for your legislators and their staff. Staff are often relied
upon for briefings and can help shape
viewpoints. Utilize the NRPA website for
advocacy tools, updates, and data to pass
along throughout the year. Let your parks
and recreation successes be a source of
pride for your legislators.
Familiarize yourself with NRPA's legislative policy. Attending NRPA Congress
in the fall and Washington's Legislative

2 0 1 2 w w w . N R P A . O R G

Forum each March helps me to better understand and articulate the issues. Connecting with my state agency and being
an active member of the NRPA Citizen
Network encourage me by sharing similar
issues and concerns-as well as assets-in
our communities.
Remember that being a volunteer has
its challenges. Work and family life compete with limited time. I engage my family when I come to Washington. They have
walked the halls of Congress with the Texas Delegation and have conveyed their
experiences from the perspectives of an
engineer and a couple of college students.
The discussion just got a little louder....

February 2012 - Parks & Recreation

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