At first, I led short distances. I didn’t think we’d make it through that first mile. But gradually we built up and finished a half marathon, and then a full marathon. It was my first view of what parks could be. Now we train all the time. 

We have free 5Ks every first and last Sunday of the month, hosted by the Houston Wellness Center. We train for Chevron and runs across the nation, like Big Sur. We run White Oak Bayou, George Bush Park, Memorial Park, Buffalo Bayou. We go downtown, by the aquarium. We run all summer, hot or cold. In a city like Houston, it’s possible to do that. I feel like we are blessed in Houston. We have so much space. I can’t believe all of this is available to us, right in the middle of the city. 

Running together has changed us. One of our runners is a young man who was in the navy. During his exit physical, he discovered a family history of high blood pressure. Even though he was only 22 at the time, he had the option of taking pills or making changes in his life. He chose running. Now his health is under control. And he’s not the only one. Four or five of our runners have actually gone med-free because of running. One of our most elite runners has arthritis and lupus. Running has kept her pain manageable.

We do everything and anything that promotes a positive lifestyle and helping one another. We visit nursing homes. We volunteer during the holidays. When one of the ladies in our group was diagnosed with breast cancer last Fall, we took turns bringing weekly meals. It’s all about giving back to each other. It lifts us up and keeps us going.

Thank you to Oanh K. for sharing her story!

You don’t want to hear, “This used to be here.” You want to enjoy it while you have it. You want to take your shoes off and walk around and absorb that energy out there. Nature puts life into us every time we take a breath. It’s a moment of meditation, peace, and solitude. And fellowship in the midst of good company.

We enjoy doing things together. We combine the best of what he does with the best of what I do in a joint effort, but we’re each involved in different things.

Thank you to Ezenachi R. and Tianca G. for sharing their story!

We started this program because we had been hearing stories from families about how our largest park in Gulfton, Burnett Bayland Park, wasn’t clean or safe. We knew we had to do something. This is our home. We can take ownership of it. So we went through a leadership training with the BakerRipley Community Engineers program, gathered volunteers, and started cleaning up the park. We contacted Keep Houston Beautiful and they helped us with materials. Our work caught the attention of the Houston Parks and Recreation Department and they added some lights to make the park safer and more visible. 

As we were working, we noticed an unused community garden right at the entrance to the park. We had a vision of turning it into a butterfly garden, but we didn’t know exactly how to make it happen. I had been involved in Mayor Sylvester Turner’s Complete Communities meetings, and that’s where I met Lisa from Houston Parks Board. I told her about our idea, and she helped us make it happen by connecting us with the staff at Houston Parks Board, and through them, a garden designer.  

Now, whenever we go out and tend the garden, we ask people what they think of the changes. They say, “It’s looking cleaner and beautiful. We feel safer now.” And that’s really what we wanted. Kids will come up to us with their parents and ask what we’re doing. They’ll say, “I want to pick up trash, too. I want to water the plants.” And for the last 3 months, we’ve noticed our recycling cans are being used. It wasn’t easy at first. Gulfton is a diverse community with different cultures from all over. When you’re not from here, it’s hard to understand why recycling is important. I learned about it when I came here. 

Thank you to Maria H. for sharing her story!

I’m 80: the oldest by only 2 weeks. The youngest is 72. When we started out, some of us weren’t in the best health and we could go little more than half a mile. Now we’ve worked up to 2 miles a day. It’s nice to know there’s a world out there that can be enjoyed and you don’t just have to sit at home in your rocking chair. It has been one of the best things that has happened to us. We have the greatest time on the trails at Herman Brown Park. We laugh so much. 

Walking in the park has really opened up a whole world for all us. We’ve made so many friends along the way that if we have to skip a day, people say, “Where have y’all been? We miss you!” One day when we were walking, we discovered a community garden maintained by the City of Houston and Furr High School. They needed volunteers so we adopted 3 plant beds. We’ve gotten to know the instructors and the students. It’s been a joy to grow vegetables and share a fresh harvest with the community.

That can be nothing but good for you. Once you start doing it, you’ll never regret it. Life is good.

Thank you to Sue B. for sharing her story!

I did some digging and found out that the Houston Parks Department owned it, and that they had this goal of green spaces in the area. So some parents and I rallied around the idea of having our own park. We met with the Houston Parks Department and Houston Parks Board, let them know our interest and had a few events in the community to raise awareness. 

I was surprised by how many people showed up. It takes 1 or 2 people to take initiative, but a lot of people will volunteer and support you once you’ve got something started. And Colleen, Alex, Grant, Ellie, and I didn’t reinvent the wheel. We talked to other organizers from Friends of River Oaks Park and Woodland Park. Houston Parks Board was a partner to us in fundraising, and the Houston Parks Department funded us through a National Parks and Recreation Association Disney Grant. 

Thank you to Sarah A. for sharing her story!

He had a pickup truck, and we wore that thing out pulling the water trailer around. If it hadn’t been for him, we never could have done it, but we did. We’ve planted trees in all four Alief parks. And well, we’ve planted about six thousand trees, all through volunteering and little, if any, money. The whole park has changed—we’ve added picnic tables, barbecue pits, and even softball bleachers.

When I first started planting, there was a kid whose parents would bring him to the park every day for fresh air. He had cerebral palsy. I remember him looking at what I was doing and saying to me, “Hurry up with those trees because it’s too hot out here!” Now he’s graduated from high school and still goes to the park. When I see him now, we joke with each other. I say, “How do you like those trees?” And we just laugh because now so many areas of the park are completely shaded. I know it sounds like a small thing, but when you’re not able to get around quickly, and it gets to a hundred degrees, it’s nice to have some shade. It makes the experience something everyone can enjoy. 

The thing is, this is our home and we can take care of it. We can take a handful of milkweed seeds and toss them onto the ground and grow something beautiful. We can meet people and our lives can change before we know it. In the next 18 months, we’ll have trails here. I couldn’t be more excited. Somehow we went from nothing to all of this. 

Thank you to Barbara Q. for sharing her story!

It’s encouraging those who don’t frequent the park to see how nice it is and enjoying the amenities that are available to the entire community.  

When I first heard about Houston Parks Board’s plan to create miles of continuous bayou pathways, my first thought was, “How will that impact my community, and will my community get their share of those dollars and trails?” When Lisa of Houston Parks Board came to our civic association, she showed us a grand plan that was inclusive of our community, and we still weren’t sure if it would happen. But they followed through. They delivered. There were places where trails were put years ago that were in disrepair, and they put maintenance on it to make sure that, 6 months later, there aren’t overgrown weeds and a trail no one will use again. It gave everybody in the community a sense that they were serious about connecting citizens to the Bayou Greenways projects.

We’ve seen a big difference since the trails were put in. My grandkids are 7 and 9. These trails are clean, safe and wide—there’s so much space for them to ride around in. Our community has gotten the sense that this is a project that is inclusive of everyone. They said what they were gonna do, they did it, they delivered it, and it was as good as they said it was going to be. And they’re going to continue with that work with this new resting area at Martin Luther King Boulevard. It’s going to be a nook park with trees and benches. They bought the land there and took the initiative to enhance the trail and put this little park in. We’re really excited about it. 

Thank you to Charles C. for sharing his story!

serve-your-community

Running at Sunrise

Fellowship inGood Company

The EarthIs for all of us

Sassy Silver Steppers

Creating our ownneighborhood park

A Handful ofMilkweed Seeds

Trails For Everyone