News

For Immediate Release
July 21st, 2021

RICHMOND, IN. –   In the months of May and June, the Richmond Parks and Recreation Department partnered with the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) to bring a team of volunteers to Richmond to provide assistance to the Department on a wide variety of projects. After an extremely successful and positive deployment experience for both organizations, AmeriCorps NCCC leadership reached out in late June to Richmond Parks and Recreation Superintendent Denise Retz to inquire if the Department would be interested in receiving another team of NCCC members after their scheduled deployment site was unable to accommodate them. 

“After such a great experience with our first team, we were thrilled to get more time this year with AmeriCorps” said Retz. “After checking with our team, we decided that the opportunity to keep making accelerated improvements to our Parks was something we couldn’t say no to.”

AmeriCorps NCCC is a team-based residential national service program for young adults between the ages of 18 and 26. Members serve a full-time, ten-month term, serving on projects to meet community needs. In Richmond, this team will focus on deferred maintenance projects across the Richmond Parks system, improving accessibility of Richmond Parks facilities, and conduct environmental stewardship activities such as invasive species removal. The team will work with and learn from Richmond Parks and Recreation staff members for 40-45 hours weekly during their deployment to the Richmond area.

Team Maple 2 arrived on July 10th, and will be working with the Richmond Parks and Recreation Department until September 10th. The seven members in the team come from across the United States, and have already begun working alongside Department staff to conduct improvement projects at Highland Lake Golf Course and the Richmond Senior Recreation Center. Over their two month stay, community members can also expect to see the team working at Middlefork Reservoir, the Whitewater Gorge Park, Thistlethwaite Falls, Springwood Park, and various other Richmond locations.

During their time in Richmond, the AmeriCorps NCCC team will be looking for outreach opportunities with area youth and anyone interested in community service to talk about the benefits of serving with AmeriCorps or other national service programs. Any representatives of youth agencies or service organizations that would like to arrange a visit/presentation with the AmeriCorps team during their time in Richmond are encouraged to reach out to the Richmond Parks and Recreation Department by calling (765) 983-PARK or by emailing parks@richmondindiana.gov. 

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The mission of the Richmond Parks and Recreation Department is to provide for the positive development and well-being of the Richmond community through the provision of parks, greenways, trails and recreational programming and facilities while working in cooperation with other service providers and partners in the community to maximize all available resources.

For questions, imagery, or for media requests, please reach out via the contact details below:

Denise Retz, CPRP
Richmond Parks and Recreation
Superintendent
50 North 5th Street
Richmond, Indiana 47374
deniseretz@richmondindiana.gov
765-983-7276