March 2010 - Parks & Recreation - 20

Who, What, Where & how
-Around the Parks

Continued from page 16

free to everyone.
" People's hearts are touched by this event, " said Sharon
Monzyk, Washington Rotary Club past president who has
worked closely with Hellmann on every Trail Ride Day. " One
man wrote me a check for $100 in the spring and said buy
cookies for the trail ride. Food is our biggest expense, but
many companies give us a nice discount. "

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The role of the Park and Recreation Department is monumental. Crews get the trail ready, transport hundreds of chairs
and heavy picnic tables to the riverfront pavilion, secure tractor drivers for the trams, clean/inspect park restrooms, and are
available for emergency work such as clearing flood debris
from the trail. The department also manages reservations for
tram seating with special tracking software.
Jerry Jasper, Washington Parks Department director from
1979-2005, has a longer and deeper connection to the trial than
anyone. The 2.9 mile trail was built during his tenure. Every
weekday for five years, he bicycled or walked the trail's full
length, making certain it was properly maintained for the public. Now, as one of several tram narrators, Jasper likes to point
out the wetlands wildflowers and describe the wildlife he's
seen on the trail-turkey, deer, beaver, muskrats, coyotes. Another narrator, Jim Jackson, explains to riders why the Missouri
River in Washington no longer freezes.
Everyone who plans for and works on Trail Ride Day is
proud of the event's " no accidents " record. Trained emergency personnel are available on site, and scores of volunteers

Adolfo Carrion, Jr.

he National Legislative Forum on Parks and
Recreation begins March 17. The premier annual advo-

cacy event for the advancement of NRPA's legislative
agenda brings members of NRPA, parks and recreation professionals and citizens to Capitol Hill to influence legislative
action on the bills that will impact our community. Kicking off
the forum is keynote speaker Adolpho Carrión, Jr.
Chosen by President Barack Obama to be director of the
newly created White House Office of Urban Affairs Policy, Carrión heads the department that provides leadership for, and
coordinates the development of the policy agenda for urban
America across executive departments and agencies.
After earning a degree in World Religion at Kings College,
Carrión served as an associate pastor and public school teacher in the Bronx, N.Y. Upon earning his master's degree in urban planning from CUNY's Hunter College, he worked for the
Department of City Planning and for Bronx Community Board
5, and later joined Promesa as a vice president. Carrión was
elected to the City Council from the 14th Council District in
1997, and was elected Bronx Borough president in November
2001. During his tenure, more than $4.5 billion was invested
in residential real estate in the borough.
In July 2007, Carrión was elected president of NALEO, the
non-partisan leadership organization of the nation's 6,000
Latino elected and appointed officials.
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18 Parks & Recreation MARCH

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Lunch along the riverfront

assist all guests who ascend and descend the tram steps or
ramps. Weather is also a critical factor in guest safety. " The
actual day must have ideal weather, " explained Hellmann, " or
we reschedule it. We're dealing with hundreds of elderly people so the day can't to be too hot or too cold. "
This year's Trail Ride Day is June 2. Almost every year, an older citizen says to Hellmann, " This is better than Christmas. " 
Aneeta Brown is a freelance journalist who has written for The

Washington Post, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, USA Weekend, Family
Circle, Writer's Digest, The Writer, Presbyterians Today, Wonderful
West Virginia, Cats Magazine, Career World, and The Rotarian.

March 2010 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of March 2010 - Parks & Recreation