Series of Neighborhood Events Gets Durham, N.C. Residents Up and Moving
Creating an activity-friendly community in Durham Central Park
Project staff at Durham Central Park in Durham, N.C., worked with a coalition of 22 community groups to develop or support events that included physical activities or to interject exercise into events not normally associated with it. The resulting 20-plus events were also designed to increase awareness of the neighborhood and to promote a sense of community pride and safety among residents.
Key Results
The project helped support more than 20 activities in and around the park, including:
- African-American Dance Ensemble workshops — a series of 10 one-and-a-half-hour Saturday morning dance workshops.
- YMCA fitness walks — a series of one-half hour walks through the park.
- Historical walking tours — two-hour walks conducted by the Historic Preservation Society of Durham.
- Durham Art Walk — an annual seven-hour event with a walking tour of area art studios.
- Gardening workdays — three-hour gardening sessions on "gardening days" run by the Volunteer Center of Durham.
Funding
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) provided a $129,421 grant from January 2001 to December 2002 to support the project.