Five Illinois Gold Medal Finalists

Five Illinois agencies were among the 20 Finalists for the 2002 National Gold Medal Awards program. The awards are presented annually to U.S. communities for excellence in park and recreation administration, in cooperation with National Sporting Goods Association and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA). The Gold Medal Awards Program is co-sponsored for the first time by Porter Athletic Equipment Co. Winners will be announced and honored at the NRPA Congress October 16 in Tampa, Fla.

Naperville Park District
Nominated by: Play It Again Sports, Naperville, IL.
Class II(100,00 -250,000 population)

Schaumburg Park District
Nominated by: Galyan's, Schaumburg, IL.
Class III (50,000 - 100,000)

Carol Stream Park District

Nominated by: K 6-M Team Outfitters, Highland Park, IL.
Class IV (25,000 - 50,000)

Bloomingdale Park District
Nominated by: Mighty Mites Awards, Des Plaines, IL.
Class V(fewer than 5,000)

Lake Forest Parks & Recreation Department
Nominated by: The Fitness Experience, Elmhurst, IL.
Class V

Child Magazine Names Rockford, Bourbonnais Among Best Museums

In its February 2002 issue, Child Magazine published the results of its nationwide survey to uncover the best children's museums for exhibits and programming, staff experience, food service and family amenities. Rockford Park District's Discovery Center was ranked number four, Bourbonnais Township Park District's Exploration Station was ranked number 14. For more, see www.childmagazine.com.

In Memoriam Donald H. Schrade Donald H. Schrade, 71, died of a heart attack March 14, 2002. Among his many distinctions, Schrade served as a Bardett Park District commissioner for more than 24 years and on the Village's Planning and Zoning Commission since 1977. In 1998 the Donald H. Schrade Gymnasium was named in his honor coinciding with his 20-year anniversary as a commissioner. Since joining the park board in 1978, he served as president of the commission two times and was instrumental in the many expansions and advancements of the district. Schrade was a U.S. Army Veteran and member of the Elm Clare Ashlar Lodge AR & AM. He was also a member of Medinah Shrine Temple. He is survived by his wife, Shirley, five children, 15 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. The park district staff and his fellow commissioners will miss him deeply and the calming effect that he had on everyone around him.

BlazeSports Names 3 Illinois SRAS as Charter Programs

The Northeast DuPage Special Recreation Association, the Maine Niles Association of Special Recreation, and the Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association have been selected among eight charter programs for BlazeSports Clubs of America, a training and competitive sports and fitness program for children and adults with physical disability. The U.S. Disabled Athletes Fund, Inc. (USDAF) and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) announced the launch of a national community-based sports program for children and adults with physical disability at the Salt Lake City Paralympic Games on March 6,2002. BlazeSports Clubs of America, in addition to offering a comprehensive menu of sports opportunities, will train community recreation providers to deliver adapted sports as part of their ongoing programs. Sports offered include wheelchair tennis, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, track and field and swimming. See www.blazesports.com.

Marketing Personnel Honored

At a recent IPRA Communications and Marketing Section Awards Reception, the following members were honored (left to right): Lonna Converse, public information director, NEDSRA, Commitment Award; Pam Sanhamel, public relations and marketing coordinator, Woodridge Park District, Vision Award; Steve Eckelberry, public information manager, WDSRA, Creativity Award.

Ted Flickinger, Ph.D., IAPD executive director, was named to the Task Force for Illinois State Board of Education, which seeks to promote learning standards with schools, local governments and

May/June 2002 53

2001 Literary Award Winners
For full texts of the articles, go to Illinois Parks & Recreation Online, at www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/. Or visit the IAPD and IPRA Web sites and click on publications.

Best Administration/ Management Article
"Finders-keepers Strategies"
by Nancy Aldrich, M.A. Arlington Heights Park District
(July/August 2001)
Judge Comments: It seems a number one topic when professionals gather is the increasing difficulty of recruiting quality staff. While there are no miracle answers, this article will help all agencies expand both their thoughts and strategies for recruitment and retention.

Best Facilities/Design Article
"Recreation Centers of the 21st Century"
by Lori J. Miller, Williams Architects
(January/February 2001)
This outstanding article most clearly focused on the area of facility design. It included excellent graphics and design detail about several comprehensive recreation center projects that have been completed and are being successfully operated by park districts.

Best Features/Issues Article
"Smart Growth Opportunities"
by Peter T. Dyke, TD&A.
(May/June 2001)
Comments: This well-written article was very informative and the examples provided by the author further support the relevance of park district engagement in community planning.

Best Legal Article by Steven J. Kleinman, J.D. and Edward F. Dutton. J.D. PDRMA "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished" (November/December 2001) Comments: The article was very timely and well-written. There were specific case citations for future reference. The "Sample Park District Policy for Emergency Response" is a valuable resource.

Best Partnership Article
"Caring for Kids, Before and After School"
by Lori Magee, APRP Buffalo Grove Park District
(September/October 2001)
Comments: Along with describing a model cooperative before and after school program, the author bridged the gap that too often exists between education and recreation. The author indirectly reminded readers that we are not in the business of "education" or "recreation." Rather, we are in the business of "youth."

Best Recreation/ Programming Article
"Programming Better Youth Sport Leagues"
by Brian E. Kroening, CPRP Deerfield Park District
(September/October 2001)
Comments: The author did a commendable job of organizing recommendations for de-emphasizing competition and promoting participation. As sport involvement continues to consume a great degree of society's attention and energy, the recreation profession must develop ways to enhance participation. This article makes a great contribution toward that goal.

Best Marketing Article
"Bringing in the New Senior"
by Carrie Haupert, CPRP and Linda Dolan, CPRP Wheaton Park District
(September/October 2001)
Comments:
A delight to read as it is well-written.This article contains statistical and attitudinal descriptors of the new senior, as well as, programming solutions and resources.

Best Research/ Trends Article
"Professional Burnout"
by Sue A. Micklivitz., CPRP Channahon Park District
(July/August 2001)
Comments: This article addresses a concern about our most precious resource in the recreation and park industry: staff. The article presented the results of a needed scientific research never before conducted within the industry. The information was clearly presented and provides excellent suggestions for capitalizing on our most valuable resource.

Panel of judges: Dr. Nick Di Grino, Western Illinois University Robert Espeseth, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Dr. Regina Glover, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Dr. Cynthia J. Wachter, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

54 Illinois Parks and Recreation

DeDe Kern, a recreation supervisor for the Winnetka Park District received the Winnetka Chamber of Commerce's Park District Employee of the Year Award. Kern, a resident of Highwood, has been with the Winnetka Park District since 1993 and is a Certified Park and Recreation Professional and a member of the National Park and Recreation Association. She is a graduate of New Trier High school, earned a bachelors degree in speech and English from Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio. and is working on her masters degree in recreation administration at George Williams College in Aurora.

Dave Scarmardo was named superintendent of parks for the Glen Ellyn Park District. Scarmardo joined the Parks Department in 1998 and has played an important role in the development and maintenance of many projects taken on by the district during these past four years. He brings over 20 years of experience with him including 16 years as a landscape foreman for a local nursery and for five years held the position of Landscape, Maintenance and Playground/Safety Inspector for the Wheaton Park District. He is a Certified Playground Inspector and a member of the Illinois Nurserymen's Association

Veterans Park District is a Friend of the Zorich Foundation For the second year, Veterans Park District served as headquarters for donations to the Christopher Zorich Foundation's well-known Holidays from the Heart program. Pictured are Veterans Park District representatives (left to right): Brian Panek, recreation coordinator; Ron Malchiodi, recreation director; Margret Sewell, commissioner; Chris Zorich; Joseph F. Bronge, executive director; Roger Sewell assistant superintendent; Summer Sewell, daughter of Roger Sewell; Mario Palermo, recreation coordinator; and Rochelle Zamboni, senior coordinator. In a unique twist, this "Friends" column features a park district that is a friend of a foundation. For a second year, the Veterans Park District served as headquarters for donations to the Christopher Zorich Foundations Holidays from the Heart program, which provides toys and clothing to disadvantaged families and children. "Veterans Park District has provided us with a shot in the arm for two years now and we really appreciate the effort made by employees and residents who dropped toys off at the main office," said Chris Zorich, former no. 97 on the Chicago Bears football team and foundation executive. Veterans Park District also helped secure contributions from prominent area businesses for the Zorich Foundation. Tells us about your friends People from all walks of life are making a difference in parks and recreation. These "friends" make monetary contributions, give their time to clean-up parks and forest preserves, teach classes or coach sports teams. Tell us about friends of your agency and we'll publicize them in this space. About Friends of Illinois Parks Friends of Illinois Parks is a nonprofit organization that strives to involve more citizens statewide as friends in these ways and others, such as legislative advocacy. To learn more about Friends of Illinois Parks, call toll-free 1-877-523-4558 or see www.ILparks.org.

May/June 2002 55

Fred Hall Retires

On April 30, 2002, after 31 years at the controls, Fred P. Hall retired as executive director of the Palatine Park District. Hall's career with Palatine began in 1965, when armed with an undergraduate degree from Springfield College in Massachusetts, he was hired as the assistant director, or as he puts it "the number two man in a two-man organization." Uncle Sam called him at the end of 1966 and Hall served as a drill instructor in the U.S. Army. After spending some time in the industrial/commercial recreation field, he returned to Palatine as its executive director in 1971.

His accomplishments—including a master's degree from the University of Illinois—have been numerous. An active and enthusiastic member of IPRA, Hall served four years on the board of directors, was president in 1978 and received the Fellow Award—IPRA's most prestigious professional recognition—in 1983. He also received the Professional Excellence Award from the National Recreation and Parks Association in 1990. Hall has served on the Board of Trustees of the Northwest Special Recreation Association since 1976, two terms as chair, and was instrumental in the establishment of the Special Leisure Services Foundation. He was also instrumental in establishing the Park District Risk Management Agency (PDRMA) and Metro Risk Management Agency.

He is a past officer of the Palatine Jaycees, and Honorary Member of the Rotary Club of Palatine, an active member of the Palatine Men's Civic Club and the American Legion Post #690. In 1977, Hall was honored with the Distinguished Service Award, emblematic of Palatine's "Man of the Year."

Upon retirement, Hall is looking forward to road trips with his wife of 36 years, Bunny, golf games and catching-up on some reading. He also will stay active in the parks and recreation field working part-time with Friedman and Holtz, a Chicago law firm with 20 Park District clients.

For those of you who have had the opportunity to cross paths with Fred P. Hall, you would agree he has not only been a pioneer for Illinois parks and recreation, but a wonderful person. The staff at the Palatine Park District, past and present, would like to say thank you, Fred. Thank you for your vision and determined leadership. Thank you for making all the difficult situations seem so simple. Thank you for creating an agency where it is fun to come to work each and every day. But most of all thank you for being a friend, caring about every staff member as if they were your very own family member. You not only taught us about parks and recreation, you taught us about life. Your Palatine Park District family will miss you and we love you!

Trudy Wakeman, CPRP, was promoted to director of parks and recreation of the Village of Lake in the Hills in March 2002 after serving four years as its first superintendent of recreation. Wakeman worked with the Wheeling Park District as the promotions coordinator and aquatic/special events coordinator. Previously, she worked at the Libertyville Parks and Recreation Department as a recreation supervisor. Her involvement with the Illinois Parks and Recreation Association includes serving as co-chair of the IPRA Triathlon, as an active member of the Facility Management Section and the Communications and Marketing Section.

56 Illinois Parks and Recreation