Celebrating Our History: Greetings from the DPR Director

DPR Summertime Activites

As we reflect on 2018, we have so many accomplishments to be proud of. Being reaccredited through the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies (CAPRA), adding the new PetSafe® Dog Park located at Duke Park, the opening of the new Environmental Education Pavilion at West Point on the Eno, and receiving a grant for a new mini pitch surface to be used for soccer and Futsal at East Durham Park are just a few! Moving into 2019, will be a year of celebration!

Durham Parks and Recreation (DPR) is turning 95 years old on April 28! Back in 1924 the City Council announced Public Recreation, stating, “it has long been recognized by Council that playgrounds are essential to proper growth and citizenship.” During this year, the first publicly funded playground was built in Durham, and the City started parks and recreation with unofficial summer playgrounds. A study was also headed up by George Watts Hill that recommended development to City Council of parks as a vital antidote to the negative effects of urbanization. DPR was also the first organized Parks and Recreation Department in North Carolina! I am honored to be the first female Director in the 95-year history of this department, and the 3rd longest serving director.

Bimbé Cultural Arts Festival
Photo Credit; Mark Schultz, The Durham News

The Bimbé Cultural Arts Festival will be turning 50! In early 1969, a group of African-American students from Duke University, North Carolina College at Durham, now North Carolina Central University (NCCU), and a host of community members met to plan a cultural arts festival for the residents of Durham. After months of planning, the first Bimbé Cultural Arts Festival was held in Duke Gardens. The Bimbé Cultural Arts Festival was established in honor of the West African festival of harvest and celebration. After the season of harvest, entire villages would gather to give thanks through dance, praise, and feasting. DPR later became a primary sponsor, eventually taking over planning and execution of the event.

The City of Durham is turning 150 years old! 150 years ago, on April 10, the City was incorporated by the North Carolina General Assembly. During 2019, the City will celebrate Durham’s past, present and future with a year of events, activities, and community engagement. Look for celebrations themed around History, Social Equity and Civil Discourse, and Arts and Leisure. A number of DPR events will incorporate this special milestone during 2019!

We welcome you to submit photos, historical information, artifacts, etc. that you would like to share with us regarding your personal experiences throughout the years in our parks, trails, and recreation centers. Please submit information to our Public Affairs Specialist, Cynthia Booth, at Cynthia.Booth@durhamnc.gov.

We hope you will join us in celebrating our history in 2019! All of You “Residents” have helped to make all of this possible!


Thank you,

Rhonda B. Parker, MSM, CPRP
Director, Durham Parks and Recreation