David R. Lee, Ph.D. was recently appointed to the Board of Park Commissioners of the Centerville-Washington Park District to serve a three-year term through May 2014. Mr. Lee is the 15th individual to serve as a park commissioner since the District’s formation in 1959 and replaces Kim Birdseye who retired from the board after serving the maximum allowable nine years.

Mr. Lee holds a B.S. from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University. Mr. Lee is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force where he served mainly in the civil engineering career field in management positions at the operational level, headquarters level, and in educational entities within the United States, North Africa and Korea. Following his retirement from the Air Force, Mr. Lee served as a professor and chairperson in the school of Business Administration, Department of Management and Marketing at the University of Dayton. After retiring from UD, Mr. Lee found a niche by serving as a Volunteer Naturalist for the Centerville-Washington Park District and Five Rivers Metroparks.

“I enjoy being out in nature and sharing the outdoors with children and adults,” said Mr. Lee. “I look forward to working with this exceptional organization to improve the quality of life for the residents of Centerville and Washington Township through its parks and open space.”

Plan for Smith Entrance to Bill Yeck Park

• Oak Grove Park - Phase IX development is complete with the installation of lighting for the baseball diamond complex.
• Oak Grove Park - Renovations at the dog park include an expanded fenced area and drainage improvements. The expanded area will provide flexibility for routine maintenance of the turf. New sod has been installed in part of the park. This renovated area will reopen once the turf has become established. Visitors can continue to use the temporary areas.
  
• Forest Field Park - New soccer practice fields will lessen the use of neighborhood parks for soccer training and practice. The construction of a parking lot south of the current lot will improve accessibility to the park. View the plans for the soccer practice fields and parking lot at Forest Field Park here.

OPRA Award Announced

Ohio Parks and Recreation Association (OPRA) has announced its 2011 Annual Awards of Excellence winners.
 
The Centerville-Washington Park District won a 3rd place award in the Youth and Family Programs category for the Fairy and Gnome Home Festival held on September 10, 2011 at Grant Park.
 
Approximately 100 children and adults came together for this outside opportunity to experience tactile connections with natural materials as they constructed miniature multi-level homes, high-rises, theaters, garages, and bridges. Most arrived in costume, but all enjoyed story-telling, face painting, and drinking fizzy fairy floats while listening to the sounds of harps and flutes.
 
The objective of the festival was to demonstrate how easy it is to build using natural materials and that all it takes is a little imagination. One measure of success was hearing a few of the families planning to create a fairy or gnome home in their own backyard.  

The OPRA Annual Awards of Excellence will be presented at their banquet on February 7, 2012 at the Kalahari Resort and Conference Center in Sandusky, Ohio.
 
The 2011 Governor’s Award for Parks and Recreation will also be presented and includes a $500 contribution to the winning parks and recreation foundation.
 
The awards are judged in a two-tiered process, which includes a panel of parks and recreation professionals from across Ohio, as well as, the association’s Board of Directors.