Borough Wide
The Partnerships for Parks honored the borough’s dedicated volunteers at its fifth annual My Park Awards Reception on March 13. The three groups from our fair town — the Red Hook Conservancy, Friends of William Sheridan Playground, and Man Up! Inc. — were presented with awards by Sabina Saragoussi, director of Partnerships for Parks; Heather Lubov, executive director of City Parks Foundation; and New York City Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver.
The 2017 Golden Trowel Award was awarded to Man Up! Inc., in East New York, led by Kevin Williams, Dominique Carson, Chawana Holloway, Ashley Sanabria, and Dante Reeves.
The Community Parks Initiative award was presented to Friends of William Sheridan Playground, a volunteer group based in South Williamsburg led by Bia Sampaio, Francesca McCulloch, Tim Daly, Kathleen Agaton, and Meghan Jablonski.
The Tim Tompkins Leadership Award recognized the Red Hook Conservancy, formerly the Friends of Red Hook Recreation Center, which is led by Marlene Pantin.
All parks groups were self- or peer-nominated and vetted by a Partnerships for Parks selection committee that focused on the nominee’s achievements in the past year.
Partnerships for Parks is a public-private partnership between City Parks Foundation and the city’s Parks Department that supports and champions neighborhood volunteers by giving them the tools they need to advocate and care for their neighborhood parks and green spaces.
