WEST ALLIS — The Park People of Milwaukee County, a nonprofit that has partnered with Milwaukee County Parks since 1977, works to connect residents with their local parks through volunteer-driven programs and community engagement.
The organization supports friends groups through fiscal sponsorship and runs programs designed to maintain and activate park spaces across the county.
"We are in partnership with the Milwaukee County Parks. Our main mission is to support friends groups through fiscal sponsorship. We support engagement in our parks, long-term park longevity. We encourage and support programs like weed-outs, trash outs, our own programs such as the Oak Leaf Discovery Tour, get people out on our trail," Dana Hansen, executive director of The Park People of Milwaukee County, said.
Without organizations like The Park People and its network of volunteer friends groups, park spaces can fall into disrepair.
Watch: Meet 'The Park People':
"It's going to kind of look like it needs a little love. There might be litter. There might be invasive weeds. There might not be a lot of activity going on in the parks, and that's what the friends groups bring. They clean up the parks. They take care of it, and they show community involvement in the parks and bring their neighborhoods into the parks," Anne Stadler Vaillancourt said.
The organization is hosting a summer kickoff party this Saturday at Greenfield Park, site 3B, with the entrance off Lincoln Avenue. Events begin at 10 a.m. and are free to attend.
The schedule includes:
- 10:15 a.m. — A guided walk with Kimberly Kimberly Mackowski, who photographs and highlights natural areas and parks through her blog
- 11 a.m. — A community bike ride, approximately one hour long, led by 3 bike leaders in partnership with Milwaukee Rec
- 1 p.m. — A free walk through the park
- 2 p.m. — A free raffle, with a grand prize of a $100 gift card from the Pasta Tree on Milwaukee's East Side
The event is also tied to a participation app the organization uses to encourage people to visit parks and complete activities throughout the summer.
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