Pools. Parades. Parks and playgrounds. Programs for kids and adults. Centre Region Parks and Recreation does all of those things and a whole lot more.
For 50 years, Centre Region Parks and Rec — otherwise known as CRPR — has provided a plethora of opportunities and experiences for all ages of Centre County residents. Fitness classes, festivals, nature walks, holiday events — you name it and chances are CRPR has it.
During the past five decades, the agency has grown to be one of the biggest sources of outdoor fun and recreation for all of Centre County. Pam Salokangas, director of CRPR since August 22, is excited to see what’s in store for the next 50 years.
“I came back to my dream job,” says Salokangas, who, most recently, had been the general park manager at the Adventure Park at Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich, Massachusetts. “It’s just very exciting. There’s so much going on.”
CRPR celebrated its 50th anniversary with a 50 Fest August 27 at Tudek Park. Salokangas says the event featured giveaways, an obstacle course, and, of course, was a collaborative event with several different community groups, organizations, and partners.
“The day offered all kinds of activities for folks. It was essentially a community play day. The celebration was a rousing success. The whole team pulled together, and everybody had a role. It really was the last hurrah of summer,” she says.
She adds that the event was planned so well that the agency staff would like to make it an annual event.
In her position, Salokangas is focused on regional park planning, and specifically mentions the development of Oak Hall Regional Park land. She views park development as creating destinations for Centre County residents. She dreams of creating spaces that people can visit, enjoy, and create memories.
She wants to continue with the goals and objectives that have been at the heart of CRPR for 50 years. During that time, the CRPR staff has remained focused on five objectives: to plan, implement, and promote a diverse menu of year-round programs, sport leagues, and special events; to promote and accommodate self-directed uses of parks and facilities by individuals, families, and groups; to provide efficient parks maintenance and operation services across an extensive range of recreation facilities at a reasonable cost; to strive to improve community parks and advance the approved capital projects at municipal and regional facilities; and to coordinate and administer effective support for all of agency operations.
The things that are going on are almost too many to mention, but in a nutshell, CRPR currently operates parks and pavilions — facilities that include the senior center, swimming pools, and Millbrook Marsh Nature Center; bus trips; preschool, school-age, adult, and senior programming; and bicycle safety. Add to that a whole host of special events that occur during the year, consisting of community movie events and scavenger hunts; aqua-dog day; Punt, Pass & Kick Competition; Halloween Costume Parade; Trick-or-Treat Night; State College Municipal Band concerts; and a community Easter egg hunt.
Plus, CRPR offers “pop-up” programming, which means a variety of new and fun programs are added to already scheduled events during the year to simply keep things fresh, new, and exciting, Salokangas says.
Beth Lee, recreation supervisor since 2003, oversees the agency-wide special events. She says that events such as the Halloween parade, Easter egg hunt, Touch-a-Truck Expo, and Kids on Wheels Parade are well known and well loved in the community.
“These are such long-standing traditions in our community. We have a whole slew of programs and we want to carry them forward,” she says.
The events have become community-wide traditions that people look forward to year after year.
“There is an added value when we come across grandparents who have passed down traditions to their grandkids and have enjoyed our activities when they were young, and now are enjoying those same activities with their own kids and grandkids,” Salokangas says.
Those traditions date back to the beginning of CRPR, an organization that was run under State College Area School District for years, before becoming its own entity in 1966. At that time, Bob Ayer was hired as the first Parks and Recreation director, and the agency was officially established as a regional/municipal operation.
Special events stand out in the minds of both Salokangas and Lee. Each mention the annual Halloween Costume Parade as a favorite family and community event. Lee recalls a year when the parade needed to be cancelled due to inclement weather, and she says that it just felt like something special was missing that year.
“The Halloween parade stands out as one of our best-loved traditions,” she says. “People just get so creative with it. It’s a great family event. I remember a family came as a place setting — Dad was the knife, Mom was the plate, the kids were the spoons and fork.”
However, with all of its rich tradition and a celebration of 50 years as an agency, CRPR actually dates back to 1928, when there was a resolution passed to create the first State College Borough Recreation Board, at which time five board members were appointed to serve in this capacity.
The collaboration with State College school board began in 1946, when a partnership formed to provide year-round activities for people of all ages. The programming that emerged was at the forefront of both the school district’s Community Education Program and CRPR and started with two part-time directors, Charles Stoddard and Curt Gaylord.
Fast-forward to 1966 when Ayer was appointed director and the agency continued to grow and evolve by leaps and bounds. According to Salokangas and Lee, CRPR became a stand-alone agency because it was simply bursting at the seams. Once it became its own operation, it kept on growing and becoming more and more integrated into the community.
In 1968, the participating municipalities finalized the annual funding shares and process for the regional operation of parks and recreation services, and in 1969, the William L. Welch Pool was placed under the CRPR umbrella. In 1970, CRPR opened the second public pool in State College — the Park Forest Community Pool.
For the next couple of decades, those facilities became part of the CRPR institution and more and more programs were added to the mix. In 1994, the Tom Tudek Memorial Park in Ferguson Township was dedicated and opened to the general public. It also was during that year that Ronald J. Woodhead was appointed as the new director of CRPR. He held that position until his recent retirement, when Salokangas was named as his replacement.
In 1997, the Centre Region Council of Governments (COG), in cooperation with Centre Regional Recreation Authority and Clearwater Conservancy, leased the 62-acre “Farm 12″ from Penn State for the development of Millbrook Marsh Nature Center. Planning for improvements, as well as initial public programs, started that year.
CRPR enjoyed a big year in 2011. The renewed William L. Welch Swimming Pool reopened, and programs were developed that promoted the mental wellness of older adults at the Centre Region Senior Center. It also was that year that the Spring Creek Education Building at Millbrook Marsh Nature Center opened.
Four years later, in 2015, Oak Hall Regional Park opened and the Centre Region Senior Center relocated to a space in the Nittany Mall.
Salokangas loves to think about where CRPR is at in 2016 and where it is headed. In order to get a snapshot of CRPR today, consider this: the agency is currently operating 920 acres at 55 sites. Included in those sites are parks in State College Borough, College Township, Harris Township, Ferguson Township, and Patton Township; COG/CRPR authority regional facilities; two public swimming pools, William L. Welch Pool and Park Forest Community Pool; and the Centre Region Senior Center (soon to be the Active Adult Center).
Also included in those sites are Millbrook Marsh Nature Center, Oak Hall Regional Park, and John Hess Softball Field Complex, along with ball fields at Houserville Elementary, Ferguson Elementary, and Radio Park Elementary.
In addition to the numerous CRPR sites, programs, and events, there have been accolades, as well. One notable honor came in 2003 in being named “Sportstown USA.” Centre Region was selected by Sports Illustrated and the National Recreation and Park Association as the 50th Anniversary Sportstown for Pennsylvania. The title was based on a variety of criteria that demonstrated community involvement in facilitating and enhancing quality sports. The categories that were evaluated in achieving this honor included philosophy, policy and procedures, education and training strategies, youth-development strategies, community commitment to parks and recreation resources, innovations for community development, and scope of programming.
The award, which was presented at halftime of the Penn State-Temple game in 2003, is prominently displayed in the CRPR offices and is a reminder of the community commitment to providing Centre Region residents with quality recreational opportunities.
Salokangas credits the investment of the entire community in making way for CRPR facilities, events, and programming.
“There are a lot of great partnerships in the community through programming,” she says. “Partners and volunteers are at the heart of what we do. We can’t operate without them. Everything from the Halloween parade to the senior center — we rely on community support in all respects. We always need more volunteers. We do all kinds of things, including Spring Spruce-Up Day and Day of Caring in the parks. Some places like Millbrook Marsh are looking to develop more formal volunteer programs.”
As Salokangas looks to the future, she looks forward to developing the organization even more, perhaps with more outdoor programming at nature centers and nontraditional sites. But she also looks forward to maintaining the traditions that have made CRPR a county institution for the past 50 years.
“I look forward to continuing the legacy,” she says. “There are so many amazing things that we’ve done over the years. For example, the senior center moved to the Nittany Mall, which has been a great transition. We so much appreciate all the support we get from the community in helping to make these types of things happen over the years. But we’re definitely excited to move forward.”
