Exploring Life & Business with Nancy Edwards of Keep Genesee County Beautiful

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nancy Edwards. 

Hi Nancy, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I began working for the Genesee County Parks and Recreation Commission in 2001. I was responsible for supervising multiple facilities that included the boat launches, campgrounds, tollbooths, the Mounds Offroad Vehicle Park, the Genesee Belle, and For-Mar Nature Preserve and Arboretum. I was also charged with creating and implementing programming throughout the park system. We had 30 programs in the parks the first summer that I planned them. I soon became a prolific grant writer so that I could provide more and more programming! By the time I finished with that part of my job in 2017, we had more than 1000 programs during the summer months. In 2018, I became the Director of Keep Genesee County Beautiful, a Ruth Mott Foundation-funded program of the Genesee County Parks. In this role, my focus has shifted to creating equitable, useable, clean, green, and beautiful parks and public spaces in the City of Flint. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s a matter of perspective. Like many things, what I do sometimes feels unmanageable, everyone wants and deserves the absolute best, but there are never enough resources to be able to do everything. All in all, I do have to say that the work I do makes communities and lives better, so it’s not hard to get past the struggles. 

The biggest challenge for me personally has been funding, and more specifically funding so that I would have a job. My position has been in and out of the County Parks budget multiple times over the years. I’ve been funded through a grant from the CS Mott Foundation, the County Parks millage, and the Ruth Mott Foundation, but I’ve managed to hang on and continue making good things happen! 

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Keep Genesee County Beautiful?
Keep Genesee County Beautiful (KGCB) became a program of the Genesee County Parks in 2016. KGCB was created in 2004 with the mission to encourage, educate, and engage the community in ongoing cleanup and beautification of Genesee County. Our vision is beautiful, clean, and sustainable neighborhoods, parks, and open spaces in Flint and Genesee County, achieved through Individual Responsibility, Volunteer Action, and Partnerships. 

The Adopt a Park program was created when the City of Flint disbanded their parks and recreation department. This program supports City of Flint residents who volunteer to maintain and activate the City’s parks. The Cultivating Our Community program supports volunteers who plant and maintain gateway, median, and traffic triangle gardens in the City of Flint. We also provide trash bags, lawn and leaf bags, and cotton gloves to people who participate in community cleanups on public space. Lastly, we provide information about recycling. 

We want people to know that it’s their friends, family, neighborhood residents, local businesses, school kids, and others who are taking care of public spaces, not the city. There is a literal army of people who are passionate and dedicated to making Flint a better place to live, work, and play. 

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I never met a partnership I didn’t like! Seriously, the key to networking for me has been a thorough understanding of the resources that I have access to, listening to what other folks are looking for, and then figuring out how to bring those things together. I seek out opportunities for conversation and do a lot of reading/homework so that I know what’s going on. 

I’m not sure that I’ve ever had a mentor or had someone that I labeled as a mentor. I’ve obviously learned a lot from people in my life, but there’s no one specific person that served that role for me. The weirdest thing for me is that I’ve been told that I’m a mentor, but it never occurred to me that I was serving in that role for anyone. Helping people learn, grow, and move forward in life is just part of who I am. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://geneseecountyparks.org/keep-genesee-county-beautiful/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keepgeneseecountybeautiful/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KeepGeneseeCountyBeautiful/