I am filled with appreciation for everyone who came out to make our Parks Family Reunion at Dimond Park last Saturday such a great success. After so much time apart during COVID, it felt terrific to bring our extended parks family together for an afternoon of community and connection. Parks Family Reunion, like all of …
To Our Parks Community, Happy New Year from the entire staff and board of the Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation! Thanks to the support of so many in our amazing parks community, I can share that we just completed our most successful year end fundraising campaign in recent memory! Acknowledgement letters will be sent soon. …
We recently received exciting news from the Friends of Lincoln Square Park in downtown Oakland. Planning is underway for a new recreation center! The Friends of Lincoln Square Park support programs and community partnerships at the park’s recreation center, which includes the creation of a new facility to meet the growing needs for public gathering space in Chinatown and …
A New Recreation Center Takes Shape In Chinatown Read More »
It was great to be out with the Friends of Joaquin Miller Park at Lookout Point last weekend! Our Board President Mandolin Kadera-Redmond and Vice President Lena Zentgraf are pictured above with Dale Risden, Bonnie Sherwood and Paul Barale. The Friends of Joaquin Miller Park have been in the news recently for their work to repair the Woodminster Cascade, …
In the joy I see at parks as Oakland reopens, I am reminded that we all have different ways to play, to be at peace and to share community in our public spaces. Let’s ensure all feel invited and listen with kindness and care as we reconnect with one another. As a longtime resident, business …
Earth Day is a time to celebrate how Oakland’s parks are part of the solution, providing us and the planet with crucial greenspace and environmental benefits that make neighborhoods livable and resilient, while contributing to a sustainable planet. For example, Oakland’s parks protect wildlife, promote biodiversity, conserve natural resources, filter rainfall and runoff, improve water …
This Earth Day, Let’s Care For Parks The Way They Care For Us Read More »
The entire OPRF team hopes you are healthy and happy during this winter holiday season. Cleansing rains and crisp air make visits to our parks particularly refreshing during this time of celebration and renewal. Our development manager, Wes Radez, recently completed a yearlong project to visit all 122 Oakland parks. Many of you have followed …
Dear Oakland Parks Supporters, This year revealed the essential importance of Oakland parks. Through picnics at Lake Merritt, volunteer events at local parks and hikes under the redwoods, we saw how time outdoors preserved our community’s mental, physical and spiritual health in the midst of a historic pandemic. This year has also shown us that parks exist …
This year, COVID-19 has turned trick-or-treating taboo and made masks a must (whether your costume calls for one or not), forcing us to rethink how and where we’ll find spooky fun this Halloween. Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation Board Member Itzel Diaz, senior manager of communications and external affairs for The Unity Council by day, …
5 Ways To Safely Satisfy Your Little Monsters This Halloween Read More »
What is your favorite summer camp memory? Many of you tell me about sleeping under the stars, playing with kids from different backgrounds or learning skills like horseback riding that created a new sense of confidence. Today, programs like Oakland Parks, Recreation and Youth Development’s Town Camp are still about friendships and laughter, social and emotional relief that is …