October 2014 - Parks & Recreation - 61
" Something I do with all my staff is I tell
them, if I can help you get a job working
here at the playground, I ask that you
help one child, " he explains. " So each
person on my staff takes one child and
they give that child $25 a week. And
the child works or does a chore at the
playground. I try to drive [this process]
so I have the next person to fill that gap
when someone moves on. "
Washington developed two mentoring programs - Just Us Guys, which
targets young boys and teens, and
Phenomenal Little Women, which is
aimed at Nelson's female contingent.
The latter program has been on hiatus
for the past five years or so, as Washington seeks funding to support it. There's
a sense of urgency to that mission, too
- the everyday pressures of growing
up are challenge enough for budding
adults, and Washington recognizes
that despite his best efforts to support
every child in his care, sometimes dedicated mentoring isn't enough. " We
lost a young man who was a part of
our program - Tyree Williams -
he took his life, " Washington recalls.
" He graduated from school this year,
he has a daughter who's 2 years old,
he and his fiancée were living together
and I guess life got too hard for him.
I thought Tyree would come to me,
because he'd always come to me and
ask my advice. But in this instance, he
wrote a letter and took his own life...
That's the second time in my life I've
ever felt like, was there something
more I could've done to make a difference? ...The kids will all tell you
something I've said from day one -
life is about a bunch of circumstances.
And the decision you make today will
affect your life tomorrow. No matter
how small or big that decision is, it can
have a lasting effect. "
" My Job is Not Done "
Washington can rattle off a dozen success stories of the children he's seen
come through his program, graduate
high school and college and move on
to helm successful careers and families.
There's Craig and Curtis Barkley who
also graduated from Cheyney and now
both work as educators in prestigious
Philadelphia schools. Or Effrain Perez,
who entered the Marine Corps and became one of the elite soldiers assigned
to protect the White House. Perez is
now running a tackle football team for
area youths in a rec center not far from
Nelson Playground, a career move he
credits Washington with inspiring.
On the day this writer visited with
Washington, the story of Beneniah
Anderson was fresh in his mind. A
dubious success story, Anderson went
to prison for robbery, and while there,
enrolled in a work-ready trade program
that taught him how to manufacture,
refurbish and upholster furniture. Just
a day before our interview, Washington
was moved to receive a present from
Anderson in the form of a gorgeously constructed chair - all dark wood
and covered with a rich, grey brocade
fabric. A note accompanied the chair,
explaining Anderson's role in making
it and thanking Washington for his
years of careful mentorship and support. Recalling his initial receipt of the
gift, Washington, a large, affable man,
is moved to tears - " I am not a person
who cries because of physical stuff, " he
says. " But sentimental things tend to
pull it out of me. Like with Ben yesterday - I had to pull myself together because I was shocked. I didn't expect it.
And to know that when I used to talk
to this kid, some of the times I didn't
think he was hearing me. And when
they came yesterday with the chair and
the letter, I was shocked. It just shows
you what it means to these children to
be there for them. "
Washington does have designs on
retiring - at 47 years old, he fantasizes
that in eight years, " I'll be 55 years old,
my youngest son Mark will graduating
and headed to college, and I'm moving
to South Carolina, " he says, laughing.
But, it's stories like that of Anderson, the
ghostly reminder of Maurice Williams'
murder and the wise observations of his
wife that ground Williams and remind
him his journey as Nelson's leader and
champion may not end according to his
ideal vision. " My wife keeps reminding
me it's God's decision, " he says. " If it's
meant for me to be here to keep driving
things, so be it. "
In a separate conversation with
Washington's wife, she acknowledges
nobody quite knows what will happen
to Nelson and Waterloo if or when her
husband retires. She's possessed of the
same sort of calm that emanates from
Washington - life is what it is, and it's
up to them to set an example of how
to handle it with grace, maturity and
compassion. Maybe not every child
grows up to become a college professor
or elite Marine, but all will take something away from the games, camping
trips, sports competitions and simple
interactions with Washington. " I say
remember - just a word you share
with a child can make all the difference
in the world, " he says. " And that's giving back. Some people associate giving
back with always being there and being
in the trenches - no, it's not. It's how
you share and how you move people. "
Washington's is a philosophy all too
lacking in today's age of radical self-sufficiency - that a little bit of support can
go a very long way. " I know they say
if you help or save one [child], you've
done your job, " he says. " But for me,
to lose [a child] is asking, are we doing
our job? And that's my biggest thing. If
everybody thought the same way I do,
would that make our system better? You
never know. But I tell everybody, I know
what I have to do here. My job is not
done. "
Samantha Bartram is the Associate Editor
of Parks & Recreation Magazine (sbartram@
nrpa.org).
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