Subject
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Proclamation Declaring July 2025, as Park and Recreation Month in Rockville
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Department
Recreation & Parks
Recommendation
Staff recommends Mayor and Council read and approve the Proclamation and present it to the Recreation and Parks Foundation President, and Recreation and Park Advisory Board Member Chip Boylan.
Discussion
Since 1985, people in the United States have celebrated Park and Recreation Month in July to promote building strong, vibrant, and resilient communities through the power of parks and recreation and to recognize the more than 160,000 full-time park and recreation professionals - along with hundreds of thousands of part-time and seasonal workers and volunteers - that maintain our country’s local, state and community parks and programs. This year's theme - “Build Together Play Together” - celebrates those who maintain our country’s close-to-home parks. Each July, we celebrate park and recreation professionals and how they improve the lives of tens of millions of people, making a lasting impact in communities across the country. Park and recreation programs are essential to community health and well-being, and help cultivate lifelong friendships, memories, and family bonds that people hold dear decades later. Through efforts by the National Recreation and Parks Association, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an official resolution for Park and Recreation Month in 2009 and introduced the resolution in 2017 and 2018.
The services that park and recreation professionals provide are vital for our communities - from protecting open spaces and natural resources to helping fight obesity and providing activities and resources for all people. Park and Recreation Month encourages everyone to reflect on the exponential value park and recreation professionals bring to communities.
Partnership Recognition
The city and the Recreation and Parks Foundation work together to improve Rockville parks and recreation programs each year. In 2015, the Rockville Recreation and Parks Foundation established the Community Achievement awards to acknowledge community members and organizations for their generous contributions to improving lives in Rockville through recreation and parks. The 2025 Rockville Recreation and Parks Foundation Community Achievement award recipients are:
Joe Roach
Joe Roach has been a volunteer coach for the Rockville youth track & field program for more than 20 years, and he is fantastic! Joe coaches more than 100 students from kindergarten to 8th grade each spring and he has committed more than 2,000 volunteer hours during his tenure as a Rockville track coach. His team is so popular it is booked to capacity each year. It is impressive to watch Joe coach and develop runners of such a broad age range and skill levels. Joe is kind and caring as well as determined to develop the next generation of runners. Joe puts his heart and soul into coaching, and it pays off with how much the kids value and respect his guidance and leadership.
His runners always do exceptionally well, and many continue to pursue track once they move onto high school. Joe also volunteers to coach for the Mid-Atlantic Recreation and Parks Sports Alliance (MARPSA) end of season meet, which is the championship track meet in which the top runners from the Rockville program competes in a regional meet. It would make the sports staff the “happiest staff alive” if they could clone Joe Roach. Coach Roach is dedicated and passionate about giving back to the community. Thank you, Coach Roach, for your years of dedicated service to the youth of Rockville.
Marti Major
Marti has been a core volunteer at the Croydon Creek Nature Center since 2021, Marti has volunteered more than 100 hours of graphic design and art service to promote the nature center and educate the visitors. She has designed custom coloring sheets of our animal ambassadors that are free to the public. Her designs encourage not only creativity but contain an educational component for further learning. She has also transformed the Discovery Room into an incredible immersive area by painting a mural of the outdoors on the three walls. Her mural creates the illusion of being outdoors, surrounded by plants and wildlife all visitors would see around Croydon Creek. Her work has truly elevated the beauty and atmosphere of the center and countless guests have commented on her incredible work. Thank you, Marti Major, for your lasting contributions and sharing your talents with the Rockville community.
Congratulations to Joe Roach and Marti Major who are both worthy recipients of this year’s Community Achievement Award!
Mayor and Council History
A proclamation is presented each year and the Community Achievement awards have been presented to community members since 2015.
Public Notification and Engagement
The Recreation and Park Advisory Board, Rockville Recreation and Parks Foundation, and city staff work together to prepare the proclamation and the awards presentation.