Central Park: Take a Virtual Tour
Our donation for Guy's Bench in Central Park goes to the Central Park Conservancy (CPC). You might well ask, and you should if you are thinking about sending a donation, what does the CPC do?
Everytime you hear about the Central Park Conservancy, somehow the word "miracle" enters into the sentence. They saved Central Park. Essentially, the Central Park Conservancy is the keeper of the Central Park and has been for 21 years. It is a private, not-for-profit organization that manages Central Park under a contract with the City of NY/Department of Parks. This past year, they were honored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation for its magnificent work. And it is magnificent. Anyone who remembers the bad times in the 1970s and the deterioration of New York's public spaces, and who happened to visit Central Park, probably could never have envisioned that Central Park could ever be fully restored and fully maintained. New Yorkers, remembering what almost happened to the Park, take exceedingly greater care with this space now.
Way back a few decades, New York was in economic
decline and Central Park was suffering along with
it. Along came the CPC and, with raising
money and with its army of volunteers, it has produced a
miracle and continue to do so. The CPC is now a model for other Park programs in the country. Central Park is a
delightful haven for everyone who visits there, it is
New York's glorious back yard, and there are all sorts
of entertaining and educational things to do for families and
children.And it is a welcome place to frolic - still
and again - for lovers.
Before embarking too aggressively into the Park's natural life cycles, the CPC took a few years to study the botanical, topographical, and animal life in the Park. They work vigorously to keep the Park a happy place for humans, and the other animal and plant life. This is not easy in New York!
This is only a little of what the CPC has done in the last 2 decades:
Restored Sheep Meadow (where Guy and Janice frolicked in the snow)
Restored the Chess and Checkers House (where Guy would play)
Maintains ongoing restoration of the Kinderberg, or Children's Mountain, near the Dairy (near the Chess tables). Restored the Dairy and began exhibits, music series, and educational programs for children
Restored Grand Army Plaza (Central Park South): this is "near Rumpelmeyers", the restaurant where Guy and Janice would have breakfast
Restored the playground at East 67th Street and all the Park's playgrounds
Cleaned and repaired gates leading to the Children's Zoo
And they also:
Redesigned and expanded the Shakespeare Garden
Established an endowment fund to secure the Park from future cycles of decline
Fully restored the park's benches
Fully restored the 130 year old cast iron bridges
Initiated recreation programs in which tens of
thousands of local school children regularly
participate Restored the fountains Restored Belvedere Castle Wiped out graffiti Installed safety lighting and designs, including lamp
posts Installed new signs so that even I can find my way Inventoried trees, replace sick and dying trees and
replant new ones; successfully ward off Dutch elm disease. The elms on the Mall and those on the eastern (Fifth Avenue) border constitute the largest stands of elms left in the country. Dutch elm disease has killed over half the American elms on this continent. The Park's arboriculturists has kept losses down to 1% a year, and when a tree dies, a new young elm is planted in its place. Initiated a phenomenally successful volunteer program Planted and plant wildflowers, plants, shrubs, etc. Beautify countless areas of the park Our gift to the Central Park Conservancy goes not just to a bench and a plaque but to the maintenance of Central Park. Our gift will help keep the magic alive in the city that was Guy's home town and in the city which, unfortunately, has served in the front lines in the current war. Someone very wise has said that the opposite of war is creation. This is a place that celebrates human and natural life, magic, play, and restores a sense of balance in the urban soul. Many people come to Central Park. On a typical day, 30,000 people tramp through Sheep Meadow (and they still can keep the grass green!). When I walk through there, I'm as likely to hear several foreign languages as English. My Guidebook to Central Park says the following: "Of all New York City's many wonders, Central Park is perhaps the most remarkable. No urban park anywhere can match its combination of inspired landscaping and recreational variety. The green heart of a great city, it has been admired, even cherished, by countless millions of visitors since its birth in the mid-19th century." Central Park, created in part on a swamp, originated in vision, imagination, and human endeavor. What a beautiful place it has always been and will continue to be. When in New York, come see Guy Williams' bench and Central Park!
