The Garland Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Department received two awards at the Texas Recreation and Park Society (TRAPS) North Region Conference on Oct. 19 in Rockwall.
The team earned the Lone Star Programming Award, which recognizes an innovative, first-time program, for the department’s “Professional Etiquette” program. After seeing a need, Recreation Supervisor Lavette Ervin teamed up with Garland Police Officer Wendy Sheriff to bring a professional etiquette program straight to teenagers at school. Topics ranged from how to dress for success, including how to tie a tie, to speaking clearly, what questions to ask when looking for a job, completing job applications, the proper way to shake hands, how to answer frequently asked job interview questions and the chance to participate in mock panel interviews.
Ashley Wakefield received the Horizons Award, which recognizes an outstanding professional with less than five years of experience in either parks or recreation. Ashley is a recreation services coordinator for the Garland Parks & Recreation Department. She has worked at Gale Fields Recreation Center and Granger Recreation Center for the past four years. In her tenure, Ashley has improved revenue generation and program attendance, improved center operations, and exhibited excellent customer service and managerial skills.
Congratulations for the entire Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Department for making their mark on our community!
Pictured left to right: TRAPS Executive Director Michal Anne Lorde, Garland Recreation Specialist Rhenique Williams, Garland Recreation Coordinator Ashley Wakefield and Garland Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Department Managing Director Jermel Stevenson
Information and photo provided by city of Garland.