News+&+Photos

7 November 2013 - Introducing Marc Mahan
Introducing our new Parks and Recreation student intern, Marc Mahan! We're so glad to have him join us as a member of our program staff. Say hello to him if you see him in the park! We thought you might like to know a bit about Marc, so we asked him to put together the following background information:

Despite growing up in the age of Atari and Nintendo, Marc eschewed such distractions in favor of playing imaginative games in the woods behind his house. Only calls of supper and bedtime would bring him back inside. His favorite childhood memories are of family vacations that took place in and around state and national parks. As the park rangers gave informative and inspiring talks about the local flora and fauna, Marc would listen with great interest and dream of becoming a ranger himself one day. Many years later, after getting sidetracked in an unrelated career field, Marc decided to return to school to pursue his dream. Marc is currently a senior at NC State University where he is majoring in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management. His concentration is natural resource management and environmental education. These interests brought him to Historic Yates Mill County Park first as a participant, then as a volunteer, and now as an intern.

25 November 2012 - Introducing Rosemary O’Day
Rosemary grew up in a small coastal town sixty miles east of New York City. As a child, she and her friends spent countless hours exploring the marsh, ocean, bay and woodland habitats within a bicycle ride of her home. Since it was only a short train trip away, she spent lots of time in New York City, where the American Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan Museum of Art provided Rosemary even more fuel for inspiration. As a result, she developed her passions for natural science and conservation at a very early age. She worked hard at school and was eager to go to college. Rosemary studied Environmental Science at Saint Bonaventure University in Olean, NY and graduated with honors in 2003. Rosemary traveled frequently during her college years. She spent one summer studying art and architecture in Oxford, UK, and another studying environmental policy in Boston, MA. She began her career in parks when she worked her first season as an Interpretation Ranger with the National Park Service at Jewel Cave National Monument in Custer, South Dakota in 2001. From 2004-2009, Rosemary was a familiar face as a returning seasonal Ranger at Fire Island National Seashore in New York. She presented educational programs for children, teens and adults, created brochures and children’s activity books and lead interpretive hikes all along the entire 32-mile length of Fire Island.

In 2009, Rosemary decided to move to North Carolina with her now-fiancée, Stephen Lee. Rosemary had been laid-off from the National Park Service, and was juggling a hodge-podge of part-time jobs to get by: county extension educator, library clerk, clarinet teacher, event-planner, personal trainer, costumed historical interpreter, non-profit project assistant – she had gained diverse experiences, but it was time for a change. Rosemary wanted to focus on developing her career as an environmental educator. After moving to Raleigh, she started working on her North Carolina Environmental Education Certification, spent two summers as a camp counselor with Schoolhouse of Wonder, created a garden curriculum for a Durham pre-school, and finally joined Wake County Parks, Recreation and Open Space as a Park Aide at Blue Jay Point in 2011. Rosemary is delighted to join the staff Historic Yates Mill County Park and Crowder District Park, and is looking forward to many seasons of amazing park programs and events.

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Park staff and volunteers said goodbye on Saturday afternoon to our beloved Volunteer Coordinator, Carolyn Carter, who after six years of working at the park is moving on to other worthy projects. Thanks to her for all of her hard work and for the thoughtful care that she took with each and every one of us. Carolyn will be sorely missed. ======

10 Jan 2012 - More Staff Transitions!
Our long-term Volunteer Coordinator, Carolyn H. Carter, has informed us that after almost 6 years of service at Historic Yates Mill County Park, it is time for her to move on to other opportunities, thus she has turned in her resignation and is planning for her last day of work to be the January 21st Volunteers-in-Parks Appreciation Reception. We will plan to say goodbye to her on that day, although we certainly hope she won't be a stranger to the park and will visit us often (maybe we can convince her to come back as a volunteer!).

So, with Carolyn's departure, the park is once again looking to hire some additional part-time help. The basic duties and qualifications for the Volunteer Coordinator position are attached below. If you have questions about this position (which will be involved with all aspects of volunteerism for both Yates Mill and Crowder District Park), please call our Program Director, Rebeccah Cope, at (919) 856-5635.

5 December 2011 - Part-time Staff Introductions
We have three marvelous part-time staff to introduce you to - Mandy Hunter, Bryanne Senor and Hilary Goodnow. Biographies for all three of them are included below, along with their photographs.

Introducing **Hilary Goodnow**:
Hilary Goodnow started her work with the Wake County Division of Parks, Recreation and Open Space during the October corn grinding weekend.

Hilary has worked up and down the East Coast at a variety of institutions such as Mystic Seaport, Colonial Williamsburg, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and Great Camp Sagamore. Her work focused on developing museum programs to give children and families the tools they need to confidently explore and interact with history.

Hilary is also a writer. In 2009-2010, she researched and wrote exhibition content for the Public History Project at the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire.

Hilary is a true New Englander by birth and by nature. She grew up in rural New Hampshire, where her father teachers history and government, and her mother is an early childhood educator, and is proud to be continuing the "family business".

Hilary earned a B.A. in History and Museum Studies from Connecticut College (2009) and completed a Semester-in-Residence with the National Institute for American History and Democracy at the College of William and Mary (2008). She currently lives in Raleigh where she is a first-year graduate student at North Carolina State University working on her M.A. in Public History ands Museology.

Introducing **Mandy Hunter**:
Mandy Hunter is a native to North Carolina and the Triangle. She grew up in Garner where she spent her early years’ creek stomping and traipsing through the woods near her home. It was through these experiences as well as those with Girl Scouts and BSA Venture Scouts that she realized her passion for bringing people to outdoors.

Mandy attended NC State University where she majored in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management. She became familiar with Crowder District Park through a service learning class during her tenure and continued to volunteer whenever she could. After graduating, Mandy worked with the Eastern 4H Center in Columbia, NC as a program assistant. She has also worked with Schoolhouse of Wonder on the Eno River in Durham as a teacher in environmental education and cultural history.

In her free time, Mandy volunteers with BSA Venture Crew 391 as the female leader. She also loves to explore new parks, read historical fiction and eagerly anticipates new adventures big or small.

Mandy is very excited to be a part of Historic Yates Mill County Park and Crowder District Park. She brings experience in program planning and event coordination with strong interests in American History. While at the parks, she hopes to broaden her skills as a historical interpreter and a naturalist.