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Warner Park wins Silver Star Award

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Warner Park wins Silver Star Award
WPCRC Director Jacob Tisue with the Madison Parks 2016 Silver Star Award. Photo by Carie Abarca

By Jacob Tisue
WPCRC

In November the Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association awarded a 2016 Silver Star Award to the Warner Park Community Recreation Center (WPCRC) and Madison Parks. Silver Star Awards are based on five criteria considered essential to a successful recreation program: goals and objectives, participation, operational efficiency, creativity and innovation, and marketing. Madison Parks and WPCRC won the award for our Warner Family Fun Nights program.

WPCRC hosted 10 family fun nights during the 2015–16 school year. WPCRC served a total of 1,740 people and more than 500 families — an average of 174 participants per fun night — using a collaborative mix of volunteers and staff. Volunteers from agencies on the Northside were recruited to help and highlighted as the “volunteer agency” that specific month. Agencies included the Northside Planning Council, Madison Audubon Society, Dane County UW Extension, Madison Mallards, Northside News, Madison Capitols Hockey, and Madison School and Community Recreation.

The Warner Family Fun Nights program was unique in its ability to bring a diverse group of families to the facility and have them interact with each other when they might otherwise not have that opportunity. WPCRC used many innovative ways to bring in families, including guest appearances by local team mascots, bingo with prizes, sponsored raffles (Madison Capitols Hockey and Madison Mallards tickets and gear), and other themes and specialty nights. Each month the program offered a variety of projects, movies, snacks and sponsors.

Family Fun Nights are held on the second Friday night of each month during the school year.