2019 MRPA Fall Workshop
Friday, October 18, 2019
Lewiston Armory – 65 Central Ave. Lewiston, ME
Home of Lewiston Recreation
Speed networking: STARTS AT 8:30 AM – Get to know your MRPA peers in three minutes or less! This fun ice breaker activity will allow participants to learn more about colleagues in the field and share programming and professional development ideas in a rapid fire format starting at 8:30am to kick off our Fall Workshop. All participants will be entered into a raffle to win a free admission to the MRPA Spring Conference!
Workshop Fee w/ Lunch (MRPA Member): $40
Workshop Fee w/ Lunch (Non-MRPA Member): $50
Student Fee w/ Lunch (Student): $20
Check & Credit Cards Only—no PO’s
Please pre-register by October 12, 2019
8:15 am – 8:55 am – Check In/Networking
9:00 am – 10:15am – Concurrent Sessions
Smart Field Maintenance Practices On A Smaller Budget
What tools do you have in your shed? Jess and Sean will talk about solutions to purchasing smart equipment that does it all vs having multiple tools that can only do one job. Learn about being preventative and cost effective with your turf maintenance and not needing to pay for the high cost fixes after the fact.
Presenters: Sean Smith, MTE Turf Equipment Solutions
Youth Sports Round-table
This session will be moderated and will create discussion on several topics in youth sports. Topics will include, but are not limited to, training ideas for coaches, emergency plans for outdoor sports, partnering with non-rec league groups, setting standards for groups who use your facilities and more. We will dive into the challenges for small vs large community youth sports programs. This session is recommended for any programmer, coordinator or director who is in charge of their community’s youth sports.
Presenters: Tyler Stewart, Recreation Programmer, OOB Recreation & Gary Colello, Director, Bridgton Recreation
LWCF Application Made Easy…If We Can Do It, So Can You!
- Getting gads of grant money
- Applying for LWCF funding is so easy, even a caveman can do it
- Sure, applying for LWCF akes time, but the benefits are endless
- You could always hire someone!
The Land and Water Conservation Fund has provided assistance to acquire and or develop over 850 parks and land areas in the State of Maine. Many of your favorite parks are likely beneficiaries of this program. In 2019 the program, which was started in 1965, was permanently reauthorized. Congress is working on fully funding the program and Maine now has more money available for LWCF projects than it has had in decades. MRPA has fought hard for this funding and now we can’t let the money sit on the table. You need to apply for a project and make your parks better than ever. The app might look intimidating, but by breaking it down into manageable parts and by pulling together a good team, you can do this! Set your sights on submitting an application for 2020.
Presenters: Doug Beck, Outdoor Recreation Supervisor Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, Jen DeRice, Director Standish Parks and Recreation, Lisa Thompson, Director Wiscasset Community Center
True Colors
This interactive program will help participants identify the color of their personality and to learn how it impacts their relationships with others. Skills learned in this session may allow participants to have more productive and meaningful relationships with co-workers, friends, and family members.
Presenter: Abigail S. DiPasquale, MPH,MCHES, Health Promotion Coordinator for Wellness Works at the Maine Municipal Employees Health Trust
10:30 am – 11:45 am – Concurrent Sessions
Alternative Parks & Amenities
“If you build it, they will come” Break away from the diamond and rectangular fields at your parks and do something fun and new for all residents. In this workshop we will go through the planning, budgeting and building process of many different low cost amenities for your parks. We will discuss gaga pits, disc golf, mountain bike parks and other small additions to feature your existing parks.
Presenter: Craig Fraley, CPRP, Director Amherst NH, Parks & Recreation Department
‘Free Play’: How To Inspire Kids to Play Independently
Angela will discuss the environment and it’s critical role on inspiring creative play experiences for children. Participants will learn the “key ingredients” that go into preparing outdoor settings that foster independent play in both the home and school environment. Angela Hanscom is a pediatric occupational therapist and founder of TimberNook, an internationally praised nature-based program for children in the U.S., Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and New Zealand. The author of Balanced & Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children, Angela has been featured on the Children & Nature Network, Huffington Post, MindShift, Babble.com, NPR’s Education blog, the DIY Network, The Jerusalem Post, Times of India, Johnson & Johnson TEDx Talks, and is a frequent contributor to the Washington Post Answer Sheet.
Presenter: Angela Hanscom, MOT, OTR/L, TimberNook
Building Resiliency In The Youth Community
Attendees will learn how to assess the needs of their local youth and how to work collaboratively within the community to address these needs. Learn the importance of youth mental health and building resiliency to prevent youth suicide and how Jamie has collaborated with community organizations to form a stronger network for local youth.
Presenter: Jamie Dorr, founder of Midcoast Community Alliance
Welcome and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ+ People
This interactive workshop will provide attendees the opportunity to learn more about what it means to be part of the LGBTQ+ community, with special attention to Transgender (Trans) and/or Gender Expansive* people. The workshop will address ways in which Parks and Recreation Departments can be more inclusive in the day-to-day work by using inclusive language and terminology, navigating names and pronouns, understanding current laws and policies, and implementing smart practices to use when interacting with an increasingly diverse population. *Gender Expansive is a broad term that may describe various gender identities, such as trans, non binary, gender non-conforming, as well as identities that are fluid or in transition.
Presenter: Gia Drew, Program Director for Equality Maine
11:45 am – 12:30 pm – Lunch
12:30 pm – 1:15 pm – MRPA Business Meeting
1:30 pm- 2:45 pm
The Decline of Play Outdoors – And the Rise in Sensory Issues
As we continue to decrease children’s time and space to move and play outdoors, we are seeing a simultaneous rise in the number of children that are presenting with sensory and motor deficits. At the same time, classroom teachers are observing more and more children having trouble with attention, falling out of their seats in school, increased clumsiness, and even aggressiveness with games like tag on the playground.
So, how can we reverse this alarming trend of sensory and motor issues in children? How can we ensure that children are fully engaging their body, mind, and all of their senses?
Using the same philosophy that lies at the heart of her popular TimberNook program—that nature is the ultimate sensory experience, and that psychological and physical health improves for children when they spend time outside on a regular basis—Angela Hanscom offers several strategies to help children thrive in outdoor environments using a therapeutic approach to nature play.
Presenter: Angela Hanscom, MOT, OTR/L, TimberNook
2:45pm Grand Prize Drawing
Free registration to the 2020 MRPA Annual Conference & Tradeshow! All attendees will be entered into the drawing. Must be present to win!