06-19-09 South Bend gets kudos for All-America City effort

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which the federal government selected the South Bend Parks and Recreation Department as one of the first three cities to implement the initiative. “On behalf of the South Bend Parks and Recreation Department we are thrilled to have our “We Can” healthy lifestyles program recognized as a component of our city’s consideration as an All America City in 2009,” said Phil St. Clair, the department’s director. “We pride ourselves on the very principals that drive successful programs like the WeCan! initiative. We know our community has benefited by those city residents who have successfully developed healthier life styles as a result of the city’s effort to create awareness and education for a healthier quality of life.” “I would suspect that with the experiences that the exceptional staff of the Parks and Recreation Department have had creating and developing programs for the youth and adults for our city we will continue to be considered for the award of “All-America City” by the judges,” said Robert A. Henry, president of the Board of Park Commissioners. South Bend previously was named an All-America City in 1967, four years after Studebaker Corp. closed its manufacturing operations. This year’s recognition comes a little more than a year after the nation’s leading computer chip makers selected the University of Notre Dame as home to the nation’s newest national nanoelectronics research institute. That decision has ignited South Bend’s efforts to bring high-tech development to the city through Indiana’s first dual-site, state-certified technology park, which consists of Innovation Park at Notre Dame and Ignition Park in the former Studebaker Corridor. The community is invited to welcome returning members of the South Bend delegation at South Bend Regional Airport, gathering at 11:45 a.m. Saturday outside Concourse A. There will be brief remarks from Mayor Stephen J. Luecke, who led the delegation on the privately funded effort. South Bend’s bid to become an All-America City has received more than $35,000 in direct financial support and thousands of dollars worth of in-kind contributions from community st partners. Supporters include 1 Source Bank, CB Richard Ellis/Cressy & Everett, Communitywide Federal Credit Union, Crowe Horwath, Downtown South Bend Inc., Erica’s Craft & Sewing Center, Holladay Corp., Johnson Controls, Memorial Hospital of South Bend, Press Ganey, Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center, the St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce, South Bend Chocolate Co., South Bend Regional Airport, Teachers Credit Union, The Blue Waters Group, the University of Notre Dame and Wells Fargo Bank. In its 60-year history, the All-America City Award has been achieved by more than 500 neighborhoods, villages, towns, cities, counties and regions across the country. Headquartered in Denver, the National Civic League strengthens democracy by increasing the capacity of our nation’s people to fully participate in and build healthy and prosperous communities across America. Founded in 1894 by Theodore Roosevelt and other government reformers, NCL is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that accomplishes its mission through training, technical assistance, publishing, facilitating community-wide strategic planning and awards programs. For more information on NCL and its programs, visit www.ncl.org - 30 -