As the weather in Georgia (finally!) begins to cool down, it’s a great time to visit Needham Park!

The Friends have been busy, and there’s more in store if you’ve missed our other events:

Friends of the Park Meeting (Wed, Sep 13)

Park Pride chose Needham Park to host their quarterly Friends of the Park meeting in mid-September.

The Friends were honored to host other park supporters from locations throughout the area, exchange ideas, and connect further with both Park Pride and DeKalb County’s Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Affairs Department (RCPA).

Fall Cleanup (Sat, Oct 7)

Members of the community came together on a nice, cool morning in early October to pick up trash, refresh/mulch the natives bed, and top off slate chips around the picnic table and park bench.

(And, for the first time, the Friends were joined by Beta club students who discovered our cleanup through Park Pride’s use of Hands On Atlanta!)

Park Social (Sat, Nov 4)

In early November, the Friends hosted a park social celebrating Picture Book Month and Día de los Muertos! Community members turned out to meet one another, celebrate, and enjoy the park.

Highlights of the social included:

• Delicious, authentic tamales
• A chance to learn more about Día de los Muertos and contribute to a community ofrenda (altar)
• A selection of children’s storybooks for giveaway

StoryWalk® (Nov – All month!)

Throughout the month of November, you can read Big Dance, by Aoife Greenham, while strolling through Needham Park.

Big Dance is a story about the freedom to be yourself and the fun of joining in!

This StoryWalk® is sponsored by the Friends of Needham Park, with help from Park Pride. Thanks also to the publisher, Child’s Play, for allowing us to share this story; to DeKalb RCPA for granting permission to display the story in our park; and to Banacom Signs and Curious City for support in creating the signage. We are also excited to have received a letter of support from DeKalb County Public Library.

Special thanks to Christina Rios for her efforts organizing, publicizing, and installing the StoryWalk®!