Milton Parks and Recreation won Agency of the Year in its Georgia Recreation and Parks Association district, and two of its five full-time staff won awards too.

Milton’s Parks and Recreation Department has been named Agency of the Year for District 7 of the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Two of its staff members also won individual awards at the same ceremony in northeast Georgia.

The city announced the honors in an Oct. 23 news release.

The three awards

  • Agency of the Year, for the department as a whole. The association gives it to “exemplary agencies who deliver recreation, park or leisure-related services,” the release said.
  • Parks and Outdoors Professional of the Year, for Jen Young, the city’s outdoor recreation supervisor, known to many residents as “Ranger Jen.”
  • Programmer of the Year, for Matthew Graney, the city’s recreation coordinator.

The department has five full-time staff members. The city said that is far fewer than many comparable departments.

Who won and why

Young runs a growing list of outdoor recreation programs and hosts the city’s nature podcast, Wildlife 101. The release said she also plays a hands-on role in keeping Milton’s nature trails and parks in good shape.

Graney joined the city in August 2022. His job is to bring in new recreation programs and work with the ones already running. The city said Milton now offers activities for every age group, from infants in its Baby + Me program to senior citizens.

Tom McKlveen is the department’s director. The release credits the department under his lead with more recreation programs, growth in existing ones and steady park improvements. It also points to work on adding greenspace and the possibility of a new facility in the Deerfield area.

“We’re very proud of Matthew, Jen, and everyone else from exemplary program providers to selfless volunteers who make Milton Parks and Rec what it is,” McKlveen said in the release. “This drives us to continue serving and working to find more ways, through our parks and programs, to best serve and benefit our community.”

What District 7 covers

The Georgia Recreation and Parks Association splits the state into seven districts. District 7 covers northeast Georgia. The city said its corners are Fulton, Fannin, Rabun and Elbert counties, which the city called a large territory.

What it means for you

The award goes to the team that runs Milton’s city programs, camps and parks. The city lists its parks and what each one offers on its parks and facilities page.

Two other parks items are worth knowing about:

  • The city held its second Greenprint open house on the future of its greenspaces on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at City Hall, as set out in its Oct. 14 release. The properties include the 106-acre Lakhapani Preserve and Milton City Park and Preserve.
  • The city is separately studying whether to buy a property of more than 51 acres in Deerfield. Our story on the Deerfield due diligence has the details.

For park events this fall, see our things to do in Milton page.