Note From Kansas City Parks & Recreation Director: Announcing My Retirement Effective July 5

Press release from the Kansas City Parks & Recreation Department:

June 9, 2021

"It is with mixed emotions I announce I will be retiring as KC Parks Director effective July 5, 2021. The City of Kansas City, Missouri is offering a retirement package and after decades of working at KC Parks, I felt it was time for me to retire. I grew up my entire life enjoying everything about KC Parks, walking through Buckeye Greenway every day to get to school, being outdoors and simply enjoying all the open spaces.

I started my career with KC Parks as a teen as a weed whacker and just kept working each summer. Once I graduated from college, I came on full time. As I worked my way up through the ranks, I never dreamed I would be Director and then suddenly, it happened. I have truly enjoyed these nearly three years as Director and I am excited for the direction KC Parks is headed. We are working toward a more equitable system, creating the QLID (Quality of Life Investment District) and investing more than ever before in an area of Kansas City that has been neglected for decades. We still have a lot of work to do, but I have full confidence in the KC Parks team to continue this progress and keep our 221 parks, 48 fountains and miles of boulevards and parkways as beautiful as ever."

Sincerely,

Terry Rynard

This press release was produced by the Kansas City Parks & Recreation Department. The views expressed here are the author’s own.