January 2015 - Parks & Recreation - 14

Letters
We hope the articles you read in Parks & Recreation are thought-provoking and
engaging, and we want to hear your opinions on what you read in these pages. Through
social media posts, website comments, emails to staff or posts on NRPA Connect, let us
know how the magazine's articles apply to your job and your agency. To submit feedback
for this section directly, email Associate Editor Samantha Bartram at sbartram@nrpa.org.

When I first [began teaching],
I had a child in my classroom
who was allergic to peanuts. We
were able to have a great school year
because we discussed [with her
mother] what was needed to be done
to keep Erica safe. I had an EpiPen
in my desk and [Erica] had one in
her backpack. Also, I got most parents on board with not bringing peanut products to school. At the time,
peanut allergies were not all that
common. I only had one parent who
protested against my peanut-free
classroom and luckily, we were able
to transfer her child to another classroom on another floor. I also would
call [Erica's] mother and let her
know if I wasn't going to be there
that day, as [in 1994] peanut-free
policies were just in their infancy
and she was worried that having a
substitute [teacher] would be a problem. Nowadays, all schools in our
area are peanut-free. However, all
our hard work paid off and Erica
had a great school year.
Comment from Elizabeth Moore, a
retired teacher with the Sudbury and
District Catholic School Board in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, on Julie Bowen's
October 2014 article, " It's Time to 'Get
Schooled in Anaphylaxis' " (www.parksandrecreation.org/2014/October/ItsTime-to-Get-Schooled-in-Anaphylaxis)
In [David G. Davis' November
2014 article, " Planting Native
12 Parks & Recreation

is a Matter of Life and Death " ], he
states that " many landscape architects include invasive plants on their
plans. " While it's true that many
plans do include invasive plant materials, such as miscanthus, burning
bush and flowering pear trees, I
don't think it's fair to single out
landscape architects. Often, site
plans may be prepared by engineers
or architects, many of whom are
lacking in plant knowledge. A landscape architect can be your single
greatest resource in designing spaces
with good flow and great gardens.
These professionals should be consulted when starting new park projects, large and small. As when hiring
any consultant, ask about their background. You might be surprised to
find more landscape architects with
horticultural knowledge than you
previously imagined.
Email from Karen Twisler, LLA,
RLA, LEED BD+C, CPRP, Planning and Landscape Architecture,
for Remington & Vernick Engineers,
regarding David G. Davis' November
2014 Conservation column, " Planting
Native is a Matter of Life and Death "
(www.parksandrecreation.org/2014/
November/Planting-Native-is-a-Matter-of-Life-and-Death)
I liked the 10 things [listed in
the Open Space blog post]
" Still Thankful for Parks and Recreation. How About You? " I'd add an

| J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5 | W W W. N R PA . O R G

11th: Parks and recreation agencies,
more so than nonprofits, and more
so than privately owned recreation
venues - such as fitness clubs, golf
courses, amusement parks, gymnastics centers and dance studios -
plan and conduct recreation programs and classes for adults and
children with disabilities. Talk about
a real safety net. People with disabilities need exercise and recreation
just as much, if not more than, people without disabilities. And with
the American population growing,
this is a critical issue. The Centers
for Disease Control has the number
of Americans 18 and older with a
disability pushing 50 million
(http://1.usa.gov/1ikTPhD).
Counting children, where conservative estimates put the number at
more than 3 million, this is a very
large and growing demographic
group. This is another example of
public parks and recreation agencies, from Connecticut to California, leading in the pursuit of a better
quality of life for all. Social equity
indeed!
Email from John N. McGovern, JD,
President of Recreation Accessibility
Consultants, LLC, regarding NRPA
Director of Marketing and Communications Lauren Hoffmann's blog post,
" Still Thankful for Parks and Recreation. How About You? " (www.nrpa.
org/blog/still-thankful-for-parks-andrecreation)

January 2015 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2015 - Parks & Recreation