Adopt a Park and Help Keep Our Parks Beautiful

Are you looking for a way to volunteer and get more involved with your local park? Prince William County Department of Parks and Recreation’s Adopt-a-Park program allows you to do just that. Created in 2019 to promote partnerships between community members, groups and businesses, the programs allows volunteers to assist Parks and Recreation staff with things like routine maintenance, clean up and beautification of our parks, open spaces, and trails—creating a beautiful and clean environment for all to enjoy. 

“With 5000+ acres of premier park land and 50+ miles of trails, it’ often challenging to keep up with the tremendous use of Prince William County Parks’ open spaces,” says Janet LaFleur, Recreation Senior Manager at Prince William County Parks and Recreation, who developed and manages the Adopt-a-Park program. “Having a strong group of volunteer park stewards to support the park system in Prince William County really makes a difference in achieving the high standards we have for these important areas in our community.”

Volunteers who sign up for Adopt-a-Park will help with sprucing up designated areas within the parks and trails system by doing tasks such as removing litter, debris, controlling weeds, planting of trees and plants, mulching and identifying hazards and eliminating of such. This program also aims to educate county residents about the importance of our parks, open spaces, and trails.

“We’re always looking for businesses, organizations, families—really anyone who wants to adopt one of our parks, trails or outdoor spaces,” adds LaFleur.

Students who need to earn community service hours can also volunteer their time to count towards those hours. Local businesses who join the Adopt-a-Park program will receive recognition for their stewardship of the environment.

“You can’t find a more convenient way to volunteer. You don’t have to do it on a certain date at a certain time. You clean your park about once a month (more if you like, of course) but when it best suits your schedule,” says Preston Williams, and Adopt-a-Park volunteer, along with his family. “It’s also an outside family activity that doesn’t require much equipment, just trash bags (supplied by the park system), grabbers and daylight.”

Preston adds, “Maybe the best perk of all is when you’ve completed the tasks, you’re at a park!”

If you’re interested in learning more about the program or are ready to sign up and volunteer click here.