BENEFITS

PROMOTING THE BENEFITS OF PARK DISTRICTS, FOREST PRESERVES, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCE AGENCIES

Benefits of Parks & Recreation

Often people need to be reminded of how important parks and recreation are to the quality of their lives. While fun, happiness and play are vital to growth and development, the expanded role of public parks and recreation is more critical than ever. Whether we recognize it or not, programs, services, events and opportunities offered by local, state and national park and recreation agencies positively impact lives and society as a whole.

The Benefits Movement

"Benefits" as a concept began in 1991 and was introduced to the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) membership in 1995. It has since evolved to include national trainings, marketing tools and pilot research programs, all with the intent of assisting park and recreation agencies with better communicating the benefits they offer. NRPA has further clarified the steps within the benefits movement to include the following three areas.

• Benefits-based Awareness (BBA) This refers to the promotional efforts designed to increase internal and external awareness of the benefits of parks and recreation and their related experiences as a determinant for quality of life. The awareness component includes communicating and marketing efforts using the campaign "Parks and Recreation...The Benefits Are Endless."™

• Benefits-based Programming (BBP) This refers to the design and delivery of programs that address or incorporate the benefits using a set of goals and objectives that can be measured and evaluated in an effort to validate specific individual, social, economic or environmental attributes. Two pilot research programs will be conducted in Illinois this year to test Benefits-based Programming. These pilot programs will be conducted by Schaumburg Park District in the summer of '99 and Barrington Park District, tentatively in the fall of '99.

• Benefits-based Management (BBM) This refers to the integration of a benefits based approach with the ongoing internal administrative function and philosophy of an agency including the mission statement, agency goals, work plan, budget procedure, personnel training, planning and public relations.

Four Benefits Categories

Integrated into these three steps are the four core benefits categories offered by parks and recreation:

• Community
• Individual
• Economic
• Environmental

Within each category are specific benefits substantiated by facts, field studies, testimonials and research findings. To date, most of the research has been conducted in other parts of the country. However, in this benefits series we'll showcase some of the "benefits success stories" collected thus far from Illinois agencies. These stories highlight some of the ways our state's park and recreation agencies are benefitting their communities, the environment, local economies and the individuals they serve.

• The Round Lake Area Park District Child Development Center provides childcare programs to more than 500 children. The Center has a very active Parent Advisory Coun- cil. One of the council's objectives is to raise additional funds that can be used to enhance the program. The Parent Advisory Council recently completed its three-year project of doubling the size of the outdoor playground used by the Center. This outdoor play space is also open to the community. By providing children from the Center with more outdoor play experiences, others in the com

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munity have benefitted by more opportunities for play. -Peggy Dohr, Round Lake Area Park District

• The Geneseo Community Park District took over the operation of the local movie theater in Geneseo, thus saving a 70-year- old business and preserving a recreational endeavor for future generations. - Robert A. Orsi, Geneseo Park District

• The Department of Recreation and Parks in Orland Park used benefits-based marketing to sell the idea of "The Edge," a new skate park, to the community. Selling the benefits was so effective that what began as a small plan for a 10,000-square-foot skate park blossomed into an integrated park plan including 25,000 square feet of skate surface surrounded by an 80,000-square-foot teen park. Other activities to be included are an amphitheater, basketball, social gathering points, concessions and music. This new park will provide a new level of activity and social opportunities for the teens of Orland Park.
-Gary Major, Recreation and Parks Department, Village of Orland Park

• The community of Skokie is a mosaic of widely diverse ethnic groups that have not always seen eye-to-eye. To address this issue, the staff of the Skokie Park District developed a "Festival of Cultures" event. The park district staff closely worked with each ethnic group in town to plan activities that would share their culture with the other members of the community. Through the event, the community as a whole celebrates each culture's uniqueness and has since become much more understanding and tolerant of their differences. - Elizabeth S. Kessler, Skokie Park District

• A three-quarter-acre lot owned by the village was low-lying, rock, not maintained, and primarily used as a teen hangout. So the village gave the land to the Homewood Flossmoor Park District, which turned it into an aesthetically pleasing place. The district cleaned up the park using its own resources, put in flowers, grass and a footpath. The lot has been transformed from a hangout to a beautiful park that is used by all the residents in the area. - Homewood Flossmoor Park District

• A young adult with severe physical disabilities who participates in programs conducted by the Northwest Special Recreation Association says she is "much more able to assist with transfers by weight bearing, as a result other participation in NWSRA's Aqua Exercise programs" due to gained muscle tone and strength.
- Sarah Holcombe, NWSRA

• A young woman of Asian descent, who has multiple disabilities, led a sheltered life. In addition to a language barrier, her parents were very protective and afraid for the girl to be involved in any activities. That is, until they met the Northwest Special Recreation Association. The NWSRA staff gently assisted and guided the parents in find- ing appropriate programs for their daughter.. After just one program session, the young woman blossomed in more ways than her parents ever imagined. She is now participating in even more activities and is a much happier person for it. - Sarah Holcombe, NWSRA

• The Schaumburg Park District has restored 235 acres of wetlands, forests and prairies at the Spring Valley Nature Sanctuary, conserving a natural habitat amidst rapid urban development. - Jerry Handlon, Schaumburg Park District

• Hosted by the West Suburban Special Recreation Association, "The Fairy Tale Trail" is an event designed as an alternative to Halloween trick-or-treating, which benefits the merchants of the mall where the event is held. More than 23,265 individuals visited the Trail from 1994 through 1998. This brings the merchants a new audience of customers, a stimulant for business, and provides an opportunity for the local businesses to work together and share ideas on the provision of services and donations.
- Maryellen Bilek and Sherry Scouffas, WSSRA

TERRY POHLMAN
is superintendent of recreation for the Northwest Special Recreation Association and a member of the Illinois Benefits Task Force.

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