Park and Recreation 2004 Annual Report

            REPORT OF THE PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION

    The Park and Recreation Commission submit its 122nd Annual Report on
the operations of the Park and Recreation Department to the Townspeople of
Abington.

    At the annual town elections, Scott Leines and Kathleen Sulmonte did not
seek reelection and Christopher Trucchi and Robert Walsh were elected to fill
those vacant positions.

    Organizing for the year, Steven J. Wakelin was elected Chair, Cathleen A.
Smith was elected vice-chair, and Christopher Trucchi elected as Secretary.
The Park and Recreation commissioners would like to thank both Scott Leines
and Kathleen Sulmonte for their dedicated years of service on the Park and
Recreation Commission.

    The Park and Recreation Department sliced seeded; top dressed, and
fertilized the John B. Reilly Field this past fall. Playing field should be ready for
play in the fall 2005.

    All fields remain extremely busy from late March until late November. We are
seeing more players, more teams, and more leagues on our fields now than we
have ever seen before. As these youth programs continue to grow, our fields
are receiving less and less time to recover from the use. The Commission and
the youth organizations have worked very closely trying to plan schedules so
fields have a chance to rest and recover.

    During the winter months, equipment and manpower were made available to
the Highway Department for snow and ice removal.

    Other unseasonable chores include bench and bleacher repair, maintaining
all small engine power equipment, maintenance of all larger landscape
equipment such as riding mowers, walk behind mowers and mowing decks, and
tree removal and brush cutting.

General maintenance and upkeep of the 60+ acres of Town property, parks
and fields was done on a daily basis.

    The Commission and the Park and Recreation Department assisted with the
Cancer Relay for Life and the Night Before the Fourth Committee. Both annual
events were a great success.

    The 25th Annual Charles F. Whitman Senior Citizens' Cookout was held in
August. There were over 200 Senior Citizens in attendance that enjoyed the
festivities of the day. The Commission would like to extend Thank yous to all
cooks and servers and especially to our sponsor, the North Abington
Cooperative Bank. Also thank you to the Businesses in Town that donated
prizes for the raffle. Once again the John Shea Orchestra supplied music. The
John Shea Orchestra has been performing for the Senior Citizens since the
beginning of this event. Thank you to the John Shea Orchestra.

     All of the programs, except for a small portion of the staffing at Island
Grove, offered by the Park and Recreation Department is self funded.

    The Island Grove and the Eager Beaver Programs are under the
supervision of Mr. Clifford Murray, Recreation Director/Aquatics Director and
Melissa Sulmonte, Eager Beaver Program Coordinator. Both programs
experienced difficult summers with cold wet weather being the norm. Even
though attendance was down in both programs, the overall enthusiasm and
spirit of the programs was outstanding. Both our programs were largely
successful due to the commitment and caring of the Eager Beaver Staff and the
Island Grove Staff. The Park and Recreation Commission would to thank all
summer staff members for going to extra mile to make these two programs so
successful this past summer.

    Other Recreational Programs included Men's/Women s over 30 Basketball,
Co-Ed Adult Volleyball, Adult Tennis Lessons, Youth Tennis Clinic, Girls
Basketball Camps, Baseball Camp, Drama Workshops, and the Fastbreak
Basketball Camp

    In all Recreational Activities the Commission tries to hire Abington Residents
or Students as the Counselors or Instructors for all of its programs.

    In closing, the Commission believes that the department is able to offer the
taxpayers of Abington a good service thanks to the efforts of many
organizations. The Commission would like to express its gratitude to all the
Organizations, Clubs, other Town Departments and Citizens of Abington who
have helped over the years.

Respectfully submitted,

Abington Park and Recreation Commission
Steven J. Wakelin, Chair
Cathleen A. Smith, Vice-Chair
Christopher Trucchi, Secretary
Paul F. Mollica, Commissioner
Robert Walsh, Commissioner
Mark S. Chirokas, Superintendent