Friends of Peterson Park

Peterson Park is a meeting place for the diverse communities of North Park, Hollywood Park, Pulaski Park and Sauganash.  Neighborhood residents and visitors hike and bike the ½ mile trails around the park and through the woods, play tennis, walk dogs. Teens play baseball and basketball.  Everyone plays soccer!

Hundreds of children have used the playground as a gateway to explore the 24-acres of wooded parkland and the 46-acre nature preserve beyond, a unique sanctuary in an urban setting.

It is not unusual to hear Polish, Spanish, Hebrew, Korean, Russian, Greek, English and other languages as children laugh and play together in this wooded area.  As such, Peterson Park provides a special opportunity to create intercultural community along with providing urban families with a natural and beautiful space to enjoy.

Upcoming events for the Friends of Peterson Park:

This October you can really enjoy the blazing colors and peace and quiet in the park.   Celebrate a beautiful fall in the park without the 6 week construction and disruption from Trails of Terror  that has been moved to another venue.

Friends of Peterson Park is partnering with Alderman Margaret Laurino for a “walk and bike the park” event

Sunday, October 16, 10 am

The Sauganash – Peterson Park Ride

A 6-mile ride that highlights the Sauganash Trail and historic and scenic sites throughout Sauganash, North Park Village and Peterson Park. The ride will start at the southern end of the Sauganash Trail (W. Bryn Mawr Ave near N. Kostner Ave) and is open to the public. In the event of rain, please visit www.aldermanluarino.com for updates.

Local historian  Francis Archer will give a brief presentation of the history of the park, North Park Village at the park benches in Peterson Park to riders and park patrons.   Light refreshments will be served and riders will be encouraged to stay and join the afternoon festivities of the Friends of Peterson Park.

Ride or walk the trails around and through the woods in Peterson Park.   Answer Peterson Park trivia questions and enjoy the fall colors!  There will be games (and prizes) for kids near the playground.

Ready for a (High Tech) Treasure Hunt, Pirates?!

Event for all ages! Saturday, October 4th at 1 pm

Learn about high-tech treasure hunting throughout Chicago and beyond. There are some 900,000 “geocaches” hidden in natural spaces, parks, and other public places throughout the world! You’ll be amazed when you find geocaches in your own neighborhood. Geocaching is a free sport for people of all ages to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors.

This event takes place at North Park Village Nature Center on Sunday October 4th starting at 1 PM.

All are welcome, families and youths are especially encouraged. RSVP by sending an email to GreeningNorthPark@gmail.com with the number of people in your group.

This event will teach you how easy it is to locate geocaches in your area. All you need is a GPS device which will now be available for check-out. Space and GPS devices are limited. Participants will head out with GPS devices (supplied) to find some new geocaches nearby. We will even release some “travel bugs” that you can track as they travel from cache to cache. For general information about geocaching visit: www.geocaching.com.

This free event is sponsored by Hollywood North Park Community Association and North Park Village Nature Center.

Geocaching Poster, originally uploaded by aaronandjeanne.

Pirate Ship is Ready for Pirates!

Pirate Ship is ready for pirates!, originally uploaded by aaronandjeanne.

The Pirate Ship at Peterson Park is completed and ready for adventure-loving pirates! (Better pics than the one from my cell phone coming soon!)

Avast, mateys! To the Crow’s Nest! Argh!!!!

10 Ways To Get Outside—Even After School Starts

Homework, soccer practice, ballet—is there time in the schedule to play outside? Visit Greenhour.org/TopTen to see 10 ways to Be Out There, even after school starts.

• Keep a picnic blanket in your car for an impromptu picnic after picking up a fast food dinner on any spot of green you can find.
• No backyard? Find your local parks using nwf.org/naturefind.
• For older kids, start stretching your child’s boundaries, allowing them to go for unsupervised walks in the neighborhood with groups of friends. They’ll love the feeling of independence.
• Have your child make a map of your neighborhood — using only natural landmarks. This will heighten his or her observation skills and can be the first step in creating a “field guide” to the nature in your neighborhood.
• Keep flashlights near the door, and go for a neighborhood night hike. Kids will love the novelty, and you can challenge them to identify “night sounds.” Learn how to make a moon journal at greenhour.org/moonjournal.
• With older kids, combine technology with the outdoors and go geo-caching or, the lower-tech version, letterboxing. There are about 20,000 letterboxes and 250,000 geocaches hidden in North America. Visit geocaching.com and letterboxing.org.

To view the full report, visit Be Out There.org.

Setting Sail!

pirateship2, originally uploaded by aaronandjeanne.

Ahoy Mates! The Pirate Ship is back and better than ever. Construction is expected to be completed in the next two weeks.

Wow, the Friends of Peterson Park sure work fast! We wish we could take all the credit but this new Pirate Ship is courtesy of the Chicago Park District which in a surprise move footed the bill for the replacement of the structure.

So what happens to all the money the Friends of Peterson Park raised? We will hold an open meeting soon to vote on how to apply these funds towards the beauty and maintenance of the park. Stay tuned as we continue to sail forward.

Outdoor Play Improves Grades!

Back to School shouldn’t mean back indoors for children. In fact, National Wildlife Federation’s (NWF) new report TIME OUT: Using the Outdoors to Enhance Classroom Performance highlights the vast research linking time kids spend outside to increased classroom preparedness. American’s childhood has largely moved indoors in the past 15 years. The increasingly indoor lifestyle causes several factors that work against high performance in the classroom.

“Today’s indoor kids are distracted, less fit, more aggressive, and hard to manage in the classroom. Some don’t relate well to other students or adults on a personal level.” says Vice President for Education and Training Kevin Coyle. “Outdoor time can improve overall health while lengthening attention spans, diminishing aggressiveness, improving test scores and ultimately advancing learning.”

For more on this, see “Time Out: Outdoor Time Fuels Classroom Performance.”

Successful, Fun Fundraiser!

Many thanks to all of our friends and neighbors who turned out for the Friends of Peterson Park Fundraiser on Saturday, August 29th!  It was a rocking good time, thanks to the efforts of the Fundraiser Team, our generous prize donors, our excellent hosts at The Hollywood on Bryn Mawr, and the very talented band, eleven / eleven!

The event raised $2,212 with the Chicago Park District providing matching funds of $729.96 for a grand total of $2,941.96!  Amazing!

Bonus benefits?  Getting together with new and old friends in the community to enjoy a very cool evening!

Look for more updates about The Friends of Peterson Park soon!

To view the photos from the Fundraiser Event, click here!

Fundraiser Fun at The Hollywood!

Join your North Park friends and neighbors for a fun evening at The Hollywood (The ‘Wood!) on Bryn Mawr!

When:  Saturday, August 29th at 7:00 pm

Where:  The Hollywood, 3300 W Bryn Mawr Avenue

Why: To raise funds for the Peterson Park Playground!  And to have a really good time…

Details:

• Live Music provided by eleven/eleven
• Door prizes courtesy of area retailers
• Silent auction to raise funds for the purchase and installation of new playground equipment
• Drink tickets included with $20 suggested donation (must be 21 or older)

Silent Auction Prizes to include:

• Tickets to the Oprah Winfrey Show PLUS Oprah Gift Bag!
• Gift Certificate for Katsu Japanese Restaurant
• Gift Certificate for a mani/pedi at Salena B Salon
• Gift Certificate for the Chalet Nursery & Garden Shop
• Gift Certificate to Biltmore Cleaners
• Gift Certificate for Neat Made Easy, personal organization services
• Gift Certificate for an on-location portrait session with Lisa Beth Anderson Photography
• Gift Certificate for yoga with the Teenie Yogini, Francine Kelley
• Gift Certificate for Thai Massage session with Lloy Johnston of Steel Springs, Personal Fitness and Thai Yoga
• Gift package of chic and crafty items from Chic Crafty Mom
• Fitness package of fitness assessment, posture assessment and pantry audit from Jennifer Dixon of You Grow Girl! Fitness
• Handmade jewelry, gift baskets, t-shirts, and more!!!

If you’d like a flyer to give to friends, click on the flyer icon for a printable PDF file!

See you there!

Help Us to Reach Our Goal!

The Friends of Peterson Park are raising funds to complete the project of providing a new play structure where the pirate ship used to be.Thanks to Alderman Laurino and Representative D’Amico we have raised $46,000 in grants.

Every additional dollar we raise will be matched by the Chicago Park District for an additional 33 cents. That is an additional $330 dollars for every $1,000 dollars we raise. Donate today and help us reach our goal . . .beautiful new playground equipment!

You can make your tax-deductible donation online today! Or look for an announcement about upcoming fundraising events!

Donate to Peterson Park Playground!

The Peterson Park Advisory Council has set up an account with the Parkways Foundation to accept donations for the Peterson Park Playground Fund!

The Parkways Foundation is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit organization that helps to raise private funds for projects within the Chicago Park District (CPD) for the enrichment of the physical and cultural landscape of Chicago’s neighborhoods.   All contributions to the Peterson Park Playground Fund through the Parkways Foundation are tax-deductible.

If you would like to contribute to the Peterson Park Playground Fund, you can donate online or by mailing a check/money order.

Online donations are accepted at the Parkways Foundation Website.  You can select the drop-down box under General Donations: Community Development and choose Friends of Peterson Park.  This will insure that your donation is credited to the Parkways Account for Peterson Park.

Mailed donations can be sent to:

Parkways Foundation
FRIENDS OF PETERSON PARK
541 N. Fairbanks
Fourth Floor
Chicago, IL 60611

Please remember to write “Friends of Peterson Park” on your check or money order to help direct it to the correct account!

Kids Who Live Near Green Spaces Walk More, Less Chance of Obesity

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Sainte-Justine Hospital Research Center and Universite de Montreal in Canada, and Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis agree.  Kids in urban areas who live within a half mile of green spaces are likely to walk more, exercise more and be healthier in general.

With childhood obesity on the rise, it is more important than ever to get kids moving. As a bonus for mom and dad?  Exposure to grassy areas has also been linked to less stress and a lower body mass index among adults.

“There was a strong association between walking and the number of nearby public open recreational spaces, including neighborhood parks, playgrounds and sports fields,” the study’s lead author, Tracie A. Barnett, a researcher at Sainte-Justine Hospital Research Center, said in a news release issued by the Heart Association. “We were able to relate the proximity and number of parks to how often children aged 8 to 10 years walked.”

“Our new study of over 3,800 in­ner city chil­dren re­vealed that liv­ing in ar­eas with green space has a long term pos­i­tive im­pact on chil­dren’s weight and thus health,” said Gilbert Liu, of the In­di­ana Uni­ver­s­ity School of Med­i­cine.

Slender in the Grass:  Time Magazine

Kids Who Live Near Green Spaces Walk More: US News and World Report

Green Space Better for Kids’ Waistlines, Health

Flyers Available for Distribution!

Get the word out to friends and neighbors about the Peterson Park playground project!

Thanks to the amazing talents of the Brunger Family, the Friends of Peterson Park have these handy flyers for downloading or posting!

(If posting, please be sure to check with the owner of any establishment for permission and placement.  Please do not post flyers on telephone polls, under car windshields, or in public places where permission cannot be obtained.  The Friends of Peterson Park want to be good community neighbors.)

Click on a graphic for printable poster or flyer:

Outdoor Play Helps Kids with ADD

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana have found that exposure to natural setting–including tree-lined streets, parks, or yards–may be widely effective in reducing the symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder in children.

The researchers found that symptoms were reduced in most green outdoor settings, even when the same activities were compared across different settings.

“In each of the 56 different comparisons, green outdoor activities received more positive ratings than did activities taking place in other settings, and this difference was significant or marginally significant in 54 of the 56 analyses, “said Frances Kuo, co-author of the study. “The findings were very consistent.”

Simply using nature, Kuo said, “may offer a way to help manage ADHD symptoms that is readily available, doesn’t have any stigma associated with it, doesn’t cost anything, and doesn’t have any side effects–except maybe splinters!”

Read more about this study from the University of Illinois here.

More Good News: Funds for Peterson Park Playground

Alderperson Margaret Laurino of the 39th Ward has pledged $1,000 of matching funds for the Peterson Park Playground which must be spent within the 2009 calendar year.  Thank you, Alderperson Laurino!

Peterson Park Advisory Council Board Elected

In June 2009, the following community members were elected to the Peterson Park Advisory Council:

President – Ben Palmer
Vice President – Lloy Johnston
Treasure – Afifa Asad
Secretary – Mary Peer

Immediately following the election a vote will be held to establish the Friends of Peterson Park Committee for the purpose of managing the Pirate Ship Playground project. Then we can get the Parkways Account up and running.

In late July / Early August the advisory council is required to set up by-laws and mission statement. After those organizational details are established the council and it’s members can assemble a Board of Directors.

Good News: Funds for Peterson Park Playground

Received good news from Representative D’Amico!  Peterson Park is on the verge of receiving $45,000 dollars to replace the Pirate Ship with a new playground structure.

House Bill,  HB313 has been passed and is awaiting Governor Quinn’s signature. The Governor pledged to sign the bill prior to its approval in the state assembly. We can expect the bill to be signed in the next 60 days.

It reads:
“Section 1075. The amount of $45,000 or so much there of as may be necessary is appropriated from Build Illinois Bond Fund to Department of Economic Opportunity for a grant to the Chicago Park District for the replacement of the “Pirate Ship” playground at Peterson Park.”

Also potentially receiving funds are Gompers Park and many other schools, parks and facilities in our community.

Nature Helps to Lower Stress in Children

Researchers at Cornell University have found that exposure to green settings and natural environments can help children to resist life’s stressors:

“Our study finds that life’s stressful events appear not to cause as much psychological distress in children who live in high-nature conditions compared with children who live in low-nature conditions,” says Nancy Wells, assistant professor of design and environmental analysis in the New York State College of Human Ecology at Cornell. “And the protective impact of nearby nature is strongest for the most vulnerable children — those experiencing the highest levels of stressful life events.”

Read more about the research at Cornell here.

Welcome to the website for the Friends of Peterson Park

The Friends of Peterson Park has begun a project to support community, learning and health through play by helping to rebuild part of the Peterson Park playground that was damaged in 2008.

We are hoping to cultivate community support and help to find the funds needed to purchase new playground equipment.

Play is important.

Play builds strong bodies through exercise and the development of physical skills.  Play builds healthy minds through encouraging problem-solving, judgment, awareness, and imagination.  Play builds communities by bringing people together in a common, safe space to collaborate, share, and relate to one another.

Are you a friend of Peterson Park?  A fan?  A neighbor?  Please join us!

Joy of Swinging by brit at Flickr

You can find out more about our project by visiting the About page.