Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 13, 1993 TAG: 9312030370
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MELANIE S. HATTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Residents and the city have worked to rid Eureka Park of its reputation for drug trafficking and violence. As a result, parents feel more comfortable sending their children to the supervised activities offered there during the summer. And more of them have been turning up this year.
\ Yana Welcher, 14, and Shantell Lee, 15, hovered by the pingpong table in the recreation center.
``Chillin''' is what they were doing, Shantell says.
When school's in, Shantell and Yana go to Breckinridge Middle School. When it's out, they spend time at Yana's house where they ``sit on the porch and chill,'' Yana says. (The day before, she had passed the time by dying her air a plum color that matched her nails.)
Or they can be found at Eureka Park. Sometimes they play pool. Most of the time they watch who's coming and going and talk.
\ Youngsters started arriving at 8:30 a.m. for the first day of the city's Adventures-in-the-Park program. By 10 o'clock, 18 children had enrolled at Eureka. The program was developed in 1992 for 7- to 12-year-olds because of complaints that youngsters didn't have anything to do during the summer. In June, city officials announced that it and other programs for teen-agers had been expanded to include more activities.
On this day, youngsters had plenty to do. Some spun on the round-about and others slid down the slide. Boys played basketball at one end of the court while girls gyrated in Hula Hoops at the other end.
Nancy Brooks brought her two daughters and a niece to the park. ``This is great for them,'' she said.
Knowing her children are in a supervised environment eases her mind, said Brooks, who works at a beauty salon. Without the program the children ``would be at home worrying me to death or with a baby sitter and bored to death.''
\ Eureka Park regular Dwayne Hickenbotham sauntered in just after 11 o'clock and dutifully signed the register. Billy Patrick, parks and recreation aide, has every child sign in. He keeps a record of how many are using the facility.
Dwayne, 14, headed straight for the basketball gym, and Patrick threw him a ball. Dwayne comes to the center to see who's there and to play basketball or pool. He says Patrick ``lets us do what we want as long as we don't mess anything up.''
Patrick plays father-figure and counselor to both the teen-agers and the younger children. He keeps them in line when they get rowdy and helps them out if they're in need. He has gotten to know most of the children; many stay at the center all day long.
One day, a 5-year-old proudly announced he could write his name, and proved it. Not long before, he hadn't known how to do that, Patrick said. It was Patrick who taught him to sign in.
A bulletin board at the park's center is decorated with magazine clippings of words, headlines and faces of noted blacks, including Gov. Douglas Wilder, NASA astronaut Mae Jemison and talk -show queen Oprah Winfrey. Some of the words say ``READ,'' ``THINKING,'' ``LISTEN'' and ``ASPIRE.''
William Moorman designed the board. Moorman works for the Roanoke school system teaching emotionally disturbed children. For the summer, he wanted to teach arts and crafts at Eureka.
He brings children and teens in from the halls and tries to get them interested in art. ``I just sit them down and say `let's try it right now' and more likely they work hard on what you assign them to do.''
\ Moorman admits parents are often skeptical because of the center's history but, he says, he's seen a change in the place and wants to continue making positive changes.
James Williams, coordinator of children's activities this summer, talked about the old days at Eureka.
``I remember when I used to come here, I'd be ducking bullets,'' said Williams, who has a degree in business management from Temple University.
Earlier this year, a young man was shot in his side while sitting in the gym. In recent years, residents around the park have made attempts to curb the crime and rid the area of its negative image by forming crime-watch and organization, such as Grayson Avenue Beautification Committee, which distributes lunches to children in the park program.
Trees dot the spacious park, which has both tennis and basketball courts. Roads into the park have been blocked off to stop cars from cruising through, leaving only one entrance, from 15th Street off Staunton Avenue.
``It had a lot to do with stopping cars coming through doing drugs,'' says Mary Grogan, of the Grayson Avenue committee.
\ At the bumper pool table, Jamar Preston, 8, was the next challenger to Anthony Moyer, 14. Moyer had already beaten another opponent, and in no time he had beaten Jamar, who returned to the line of challengers.
Up next was Anthony's 8-year-old sister, Princess, who had problems hitting the balls hard enough. Patrick saw her dilemma and came to help. Princess positioned herself, popped the ball with the stick and it dropped into the pocket. She grinned. Despite her improvement, Anthony beat her, hands down.
Meanwhile, Patrick mediated a dispute between Henry English, 12, and Nicole Hamm, 9, who were arguing over who was next at the pool table.
Patrick walked over and asked what was going on. ``Nothin','' was the reply, then Henry explained he was simply saying he was going to play after Nicole.
``Why you gotta go through all that to say you're next after her?'' Patrick asked.
``I don't know,'' Henry replied.
``Well, think about it.'' Patrick walked away with a slight smile, leaving the two sitting in silence.
\ The temperature outside climbed into the 90s. It was almost as hot inside. Recreation aide Tony Bowles bemoaned the lack of air conditioning - only the arts and crafts room in the back has it. Bowles arrived for his 2 p.m. shift 30 minutes early, and spent the extra time at the entrance talking to young people coming and going.
At 4 p.m. Bible school started and with Bowles' encouragement some youngsters, including Henry, joined the class.
Halfway through, some of the students complained the class was too long, but instructor Blanche Craig succeeded in engaging them in discussions of good versus evil, including fighting in the Middle East and the tragedy in Waco, Texas. But their minds were set on playing pool.
''You say you've got to go play pool,'' Craig said to the small group. ``Which is more important, this or pool?''
Silence.
Finally Henry said, ``It's God, but I did want to play pool.''
by CNB