Philadelphia Park Rangers share their typical day-to-day at their wonderful parks with Parks and Rec to celebrate Park Rangers Day.
Monitoring over 50+ miles of trails and 350 acres of nature, the Park Rangers job consists of overseeing the park grounds, enforcing basic park rules, and ensuring the general safety of park on-goers.
“Generally, we are patrolling and enforcing rules. We focus on trying to make sure people are safe and aren’t doing things that aren’t allowed in the park.” said Urban Park Ranger Garlin Riley.
Stationed at McPherson, rangers like Garlin and his co-worker, Richard Shippen, both aim to prevent potential hazards or incidents on park property.
“Activities like camping at night, lighting fires, having big dogs not on leashes, or partaking in drug use are strictly prohibited.”,
Despite their vigilance, McPherson rangers said drug usage has become an epidemic for the staff. “Drugs are very serious over here. It is a problem. It has gone down…however we still look out. When we tell them they can’t do that here, they are respectful for the most part and leave.”
For the past three years, Northeast Supervisor Monica Hicks has worked with this team at McPherson Park to help keep things clean, respectful, and fun. “For the most part, we try to enforce park rules; we tell people what they can and can’t do... We are mainly here to keep peace and order and to make sure everyone can use the park safely.”
Despite the minor hiccups that occur on the job, Monica is still able to recount some highlights that make it all worth it.
“This job makes me feel like I’m a representative of the Philadelphia experience. People come to the park to make good memories, and to be part of that is great. Also, it is sometimes exciting to work at an event or concert because then you can see some famous people. But overall, I just enjoy being part of the park.”
Even though there are some highlights, Supervisor Monica still views the potential for improvement at the park.
“I would love to add more park rangers so we can properly patrol it as needed. Also, to provide a safe, clean place for people who are facing the outside”
To the Northwest district supervisor, Sahlee Brown, Wissahickon and its trails are important parts of this job and part of the reason he started working there.
“I really believe it was a no-brainer. I spent all my time here anyway. And I always look at the job now as if I were to spend time anywhere; it would be in the park," said the veteran of twenty-eight years.
When asked about how he and his team were handling the next steps after several drownings, Brown informed Parks and Rec that there were changes being put in place.
“We immediately reached out to PPR staff, who provided us with extra signage. Once that came, we went from the ten boxes in Lincoln Drive all the way up to Western Drive Avenue, posting signs about swimming, posting signs about rules and regulations.”
In addition to the signage, the Wissahickon team has also begun “beefing up patrol” in target areas and holding meetings with police districts to coordinate providing additional safety measures for local hikers or nature enthusiasts to prevent any incidents from happening again.
“From Magargee Dam to Valley Green restaurant, we are keeping people from jumping off the bridge and dam, along with making sure people are safe and understand what is going on.”
Supervisor Brown has been involved in park ranger service since the age of nineteen and continues to enjoy the job he has been doing after all these years.
“I love animals and love working with nature. I never saw myself working in an office or corporate building. If you like interacting with people and with animals, you’ll enjoy this job.” Right now, FDR park is hosting its annual Southeast Asian Market, an open community space made for social gatherings, the sharing of ethnic cuisines, and business opportunities through vending.
The event itself is run by a community of refugees and immigrants who have resided in FDR park for 35+ years. There are two event seasons for the market:
· Season 1 (April–June)
· Season 2 (July–October)
As far as impact goes, the Southeast Asian Market meets expectations, not only with its cultural representation but also with social outreach for causes like the anti-Asian hate movement that started in 2021.
Park rangers, along with the parks, are a staple that keeps communities connected with one another. The efforts of Rangers such as Theodore Hughes, aka Ranger Ted, can be clearly seen when on the job. Rangers such as himself play a pivotal role in patrolling the East Asian Market in FDR Park.
Ranger Ted ensures that the market's patrons park responsibly and legally. Through issuing parking tickets to violators, he not only upholds the park's integrity but also helps maintain a smooth flow of traffic and accessibility for all visitors.
Philadelphia Park Rangers are the unsung heroes who nurture and safeguard the city's green and urban park areas. They provide park supervision and community engagement and are a valuable resource to the Philadelphia community. So, the next time you find yourself!
While enjoying the peacefulness and cleanliness of Philadelphia Parks, take a moment to appreciate the hard work and devotion of the park Rangers!
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