The Department of Parks & Recreation offers a variety of programs for the community. While we strive to offer something for everyone, suggestions for future classes and program topics are appreciated. For parents to suggest a class, email us here. For teachers to suggest a class, complete this document and email it to the Department of Parks & Recreation by clicking here.
Senior Citizen Bus will resume on Monday, June 21st. Mask are required to ride the bus. Department of Parks & Recreation welcomes Ronald Martins as the new City bus driver. With any questions, please contact the Department of Parks & Recreation.
Linden Department of Parks and Recreation was presented the Excellence in Visual and Cultural Arts Award for “The Crafting Corner Playground Program” at the New Jersey Recreation and Park Association (NJRPA) Annual Awards Dinner at Summit Family Aquatic Center in Summit, NJ. Ralph Dunhamn (Recreation Director), Angelo Monaco (Day Camp/Playground Coordinator), Valerie Graham (Craft Supervisor), Rooks Crawford (Recreation Leader) and Elected Officials were present on Wednesday, May 19, 2021 to accept this award.
Challenged with creating Arts and Crafts programming during a socially distant summer, the staff of the Linden Recreation Department, incorporated “The Crafting Corner” into their Virtual Summer Camp program.
Designed to appeal to children between the ages of 5 through 18, this program offered 50 different craft lessons that participants could complete in the safety of their own homes.
Marketed through the weekly newsletter, program information and weekly materials pick up forms were sent through the email feature of Community Pass. Families were invited to pick up pre- registered “Craft Kits” through contactless delivery at their local recreation center. Linden Recreation Staff created 50 instructional videos that demonstrated how to successfully complete the established crafts.
Eighty seven families picked up the craft kits required to complete the program which cost approximately $5,000 in supplies and staff hours. Families reached out for extra supplies at the end of the program to continue the crafting of their favorite projects.
The positive feedback from those who participated in Crafting Corner prompted the staff to extend the program into the Fall options for Senior Citizens programming.
The purpose of the New Jersey Recreation and Park Association’s Awards Program is to honor and identify dedicated leaders, employees, and volunteers in the field of Parks and Recreation, and to recognize the State’s outstanding Recreation and Park agencies for excellence in programming, publicity and facility design. The goal of the Awards Program is to focus State attention on the achievement of Park and Recreation agencies, to recognize the continuing efforts of staff and volunteers, and to acknowledge support extended by member agencies.
To view and/or download a PDF of this press release, click here.
Due to inclement weather, the June 8th concert, which would have started at 7:30pm at the Raymond Wood Bauer Promenade, was cancelled.
Linden Department of Parks and Recreation was presented the Agency Showcase Award for Website or Web Feature/Application at the New Jersey Recreation and Park Association (NJRPA) Annual Awards Ceremony at the Summit Family Aquatic Center in Summit, NJ. Ralph Dunhamn (Recreation Director), Angelo Monaco (Day Camp/Playground Coordinator), Branly Cadet (Playground Supervisor), Joshua Weiss were present on May 19 to accept the award.
Faced with the challenge of providing Summer programming bound by COVID-19 restrictions and social distancing protocols, the staff of Linden Recreation responded by creating a Web based Virtual Summer Camp.
Virtual Summer Camp set out to provide a variety of programming opportunities for city residents. Angelo Monaco, Summer Day Camp/Playground Coordinator approved all aspects of the website and edited the embedded Google sheet that contained the weekly schedules and links to all of the instructional YouTube videos that were specific to each activity.
Virtual Camps included live instruction from qualified staff and guest presenters, specialized content and learning resources, after camp challenges to keep campers engaged between sessions, unplugged projects that encouraged children to keep learning away from the computer screen with a variety of dates and times to choose from so that participants could fit a variety of day camp activities into a single week. Programmatic success of the 2020 program has prompted a re-boot of the Virtual Summer Camp website for the upcoming 2021 season, which will include new program offerings.
The purpose of the New Jersey Recreation and Park Association’s Awards Program is to honor and identify dedicated leaders, employees, and volunteers in the field of Parks and Recreation, and to recognize the State’s outstanding Recreation and Park agencies for excellence in programming, publicity, and facility design. The goal of the Awards Program is to focus State attention on the achievement of Park and Recreation agencies, to recognize the continuing efforts of staff and volunteers, and to acknowledge support extended by member agencies.
To view this press release on Union News Daily, please click here.
The Linden Summer Concert Series is back starting June 1st at the Raymond Wood Bauer Promenade! The 2021 Linden Summer Concert Series is sponsored by Mayor Derek Armstead, Linden City Council, the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Department of Buildings and Grounds. For more information and the updated schedule, click here.
Linden Department of Parks and Recreation announces that registration has begun for their summer outdoor day camps. To register, participants must be a Linden Resident and entering grades kindergarten through sixth grade as of September 2021. Click here to view and/or download all information about Linden’s Summer Camp program.
2021 Spring Playgrounds are back from May 17th through June 25th Monday through Friday, 5pm – 8pm, where each park will have a counselor on site. All Linden children are welcome! Click here to view and/or download the informational flyer about this event.
We are excited to reopen the Summer Day Camp program for in-person activities for 2021. Our Day Camp program is more important than ever for Linden’s youth for several reasons: Giving children the opportunity to socialize, providing working parents with safe childcare, and providing an opportunity for children to have a routine and return to a sense of normalcy (Lupert, 2021, Par. 6-7). However, the main priority is the health and safety of our participants. By combining these elements, we aim for our participants have a safe, enjoyable, and transformative experience in the parks and facilities of the City of Linden. The Day Camp Reopening Plan is guided by the New Jersey 2021 COVID-19 Youth Summer Camp Standards Guidelines. Thus, please note that this plan is tentative and may be changed at any time based on updated guidance from the appropriate authorities.
Click here to view and/or download the full Parks & Recreation 2021 Summer Day Camp Reopening Plan.