Volunteering in the lead role is an opportunity to:
- Improve your skills in leading and coordinating volunteers
- Develop relationships with city staff and other community leaders
- Learn about tree care, native plants, and park management practices
- Add community service to your resume
- Make a difference in a legendary San Francisco park
What Panhandle Park Stewards has accomplished:
- This project has improved the Panhandle Park through coordinating the efforts of hundreds of volunteers from the community in partnership with the city of San Francisco at a monthly workday.
- A top priority has been to improve care for the park’s historically significant mature trees. In addition, volunteers have worked to amend the soil in the park’s meadows, prune shrubs and perennials, remove debris from pathways, and plant trees and gardens.
- The project has established a group of dedicated volunteers who participate in the monthly workday (the email list for the workday has 127 members). It has established a durable partnership with a neighborhood school for participation by their families.
- Another success of this project was to formulate capital improvements to the park that were implemented in 2012. This project established a rain garden full of native plants and other improvements near the basketball courts and playground.
- Panhandle Park Stewards also completed a series of special events to promote neighborhood engagement, funded by the San Francisco Parks Alliance. The project has a blog website and a Twitter account to document and disseminate information pertinent to the park.
Please contact us! A volunteer job description follows. Neighborhood leaders and the SF Rec and Parks department would like to continue the monthly community workdays in the Panhandle. We are seeking a volunteer from the community to attend these workdays and lead the overall project. During 2019, you can work with the current leader to learn the ropes and meet other people involved in this project.
CONTACT -
Dale Danley / dale987@gmail.com / panhandlepark.blogspot.com / @4thePanhandle
North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association, Email: board@nopna.org
Panhandle Park Stewards
Volunteer leadership position: Director for Community Engagement
The Director for Community Engagement is responsible for continuation and development of Panhandle Park Stewards, which mobilizes volunteers to take part in a monthly community workday. This volunteer position is accountable to the North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association (NOPNA). NOPNA is fiscal sponsor of this project, collecting and managing any funds for the Panhandle Park Stewards. The San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department provides staff, tools, and management of the community workday.Basic Responsibilities of the Director of Community Engagement
- Attend the monthly community workday at the Panhandle Park, to greet volunteers from the community and provide a liaison with parks staff
- Disseminate information to the public about the community workday by managing a listserv, sending two emails per month
- Respond to public inquiries about the community workday by email and telephone
- On an annual basis, contact the staff of the parks department to schedule the community workdays and provide statistics of the number of participants during the previous year
Additional opportunities for the Director of Community Engagement
- Post photos and written descriptions to the website/blog dedicated to the project
- Expand promotional efforts to let more people know about the workday by posting in social media, writing articles for neighborhood newsletters, and putting posters on the park bulletin board
- Enlist other community based groups (e.g.,San Francisco Day School, Bridgemen, One Brick) to bring their volunteers to the monthly workday
- Raise funds for the project through sponsorships and donations
- Spend funds collected on items such as volunteer appreciation events
- Monitor park-related plans and activities undertaken by the Parks Department and other city agencies including SFMTA, SFDPW, and SF Arts Commission
- In collaboration with other neighbors and local organizations, write grant proposals for park improvements
If interested, please contact Dale Danley (dale987@gmail.com) or the North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association.
Panhandle Park Stewards Panhandlepark.blogspot.com
North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association www.nopna.org
