Expanding on success in 2022

In 2021, We kicked off our recreation season with our youth baseball league. The league had 36 teams with over 400 kids, ranging in age from 4-14, and included children from Perkins, Sandusky, Huron, Castalia and Norwalk. All games were played at Sports Force Parks in May and June. We had several generous sponsors including our main league sponsor Firelands Regional Health Systems. Movie nights started in late June and ran through the first week of August, featuring six different movies. They started at dark on Thursday's nights and included popcorn and water for anyone in attendance. These were all shown at Strickfaden Park. On Tuesday mornings, from May through August, the Sandusky Library had their Story Time program at Strickfaden Park. Abernathy Park had a grand re-opening. The improvements to the park included a new playground, swing set, shelter and community garden. The basketball court was repurposed, new fencing, retention pond and parking lot were also installed. At the grand re-opening we had a cookout for the neighborhood and Pastor Strong, as well as other neighborhood residents attended the event. September brought our Founders Day celebration at the Erie County Fairgrounds. Once again, we had several generous sponsors and contributors for our flagship event. The Friends of Perkins Township provided root beer floats and the Perkins High School marching band performed the National Anthem to kick off the day. We had many volunteers: The Perkins HS Cheerleaders and the Perkins HS Color Guard played a major role in the success of the event. There were vendors from Perkins Township that lined the building with information and free gifts and volunteers worked craft stations, game areas and even featured a petting zoo. The Erie County Heritage Barn was open for everyone to enjoy. Rock 'n Roll Express emceed the event. The Perkins Police, Fire and Public Works departments were present with their vehicles as well. Trunk or Treat was hosted in October and, with the hard work of the Perkins Police Department, was the most attended event of the year. The Christmas Tree lighting ceremony was in early December and featured all new decorations and lights. The night of the event even had a special guest arrive courtesy of the Perkins Fire Department, Santa Claus! Fresh popcorn, hot chocolate and crafts were available. The night was a success, and we look forward to expanding the event further in the coming years. The last event of the year was the Santa Parade. Santa rode around in the PTFD fire engine and was accompanied by several other township departments including a personal escort by Chief Vince Donald. In 2022, The new year will bring a lot of the same energy and look to expand on the success we had in 2021. Baseball will be our first responsibility. We will be looking for sponsors for our individual teams. The new recreation assistant will be tasked with the work that goes into running the league. Registration will open later this month and be open until mid to late March. Please watch our website and Facebook pages for further information. Founders Day, Easter Egg hunt, movie nights, Trunk-or-Treat, Christmas lighting at Strickfaden and the annual Santa Parade will be happening in 2022. Please watch our website and Facebook for exact time and location of the events. We will also be adding to our Recreation program a new employee and with the new addition we will be adding new programming and events, including a lunch time program at our neighborhood parks. The parks will also receive some sprucing up. We are looking forward to the 2022 Recreation season and hope to see everyone out enjoying our events and everything Perkins Township has to offer. Brad Link,Perkins Township public works director, recreation coordinator