WHEREAS, California’s residents love their national, state, and local parks and recreation services, as they provide access to the serenity and inspiration of nature, outdoor spaces, as well as activities that facilitate social connections, human development, arts appreciation, lifelong learning, and positive alternatives for youth; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals maintain millions of acres of public lands in order to safely facilitate the use of the state’s local parks, open spaces, trails, recreation facilities, and programs; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals promote the physical and mental health of Californians by making outdoor activities and sports available to able and disabled children, teens, adults, and seniors; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals strengthen communities by providing facilities and services that reflect and celebrate community heritage, culture, and history; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals sustain and steward the state’s natural resources by protecting habitat and open space, connecting people to nature, and promoting the ecological function of parkland; and

WHEREAS, When the COVID-19 pandemic hit California’s communities, parks and recreation professionals responded immediately by implementing best practices designed to ensure the public could safely find respite in local outdoor parks and open spaces; and

WHEREAS, When the health care sector was overwhelmed by the burden of responding to COVID-19, parks and recreation departments and park districts stepped in to assist by converting their facilities into COVID-19 testing centers and later vaccination administration sites; and

WHEREAS, Senior citizens were of the most vulnerable populations to COVID-19, thus parks and recreation professionals found creative ways to keep seniors safe and engaged by developing new and different virtual recreation programming and delivering needed nutrition services; and

WHEREAS, When recreation activities were halted in accordance with shelter in place orders across the country, parks and recreation professionals immediately developed campaigns to inspire people to stay active and tirelessly worked to safely keep outdoor spaces available to the public; and

WHEREAS, When public health orders prohibited group gatherings, parks and recreation professionals launched new, innovative events and activities that helped bring communities together to connect and enjoy a shared experience; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals rose up to the challenge to reimagine summer programs and deliver safe and cost-effective recreation opportunities for California’s youth; and

WHEREAS, Parks and recreation professionals across the state also introduced distance learning assistance programs that not only supported students through the challenges of remote education, but also offered parents affordable childcare alternatives that allowed California’s workforce to get back to their jobs and provide for their families; and

WHEREAS, When California faced intense heat waves during 2020, parks and recreation professionals protected the homeless population from the health effects of heat waves by creating cooling centers in air conditioned public spaces; and

WHEREAS, When the pandemic was overlapped with devastating wildfires, parks and recreation professionals persevered and continued to serve California’s communities by turning their facilities into firefighter staging centers, emergency event management centers, and emergency shelters; now, therefore, be it