NYC Parks Covid Oral History

by NYC Parks

In 2022, NYC Parks embarked on an oral history project to capture stories from more than 100 Parks employees about their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 changed New Yorkers’ relationship with open space. This project aims to capture and preserve for the historical record this important slice of Parks history. The interviews captured what they did, saw, thought, learned, and hoped for as New Yorkers, public servants, and lovers and stewards of parks and open spaces. The interviews are raw, sincere, insightful, personal, painful, and funny—as unique as each person who participated in this project. Participants span entry level staff to the Commissioner. The stories represent every corner of the Agency. The podcast is produced by the NYC Parks Media Education Lab at McCarren Park Play Center in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The hosts are Diana Baker, senior media education associate, and Kevin C. Fitzpatrick, author and project director. Eghosa R. Ogboe: Producer/Editor.

Latest episodes

Showing 10 · updated from the feed

#12 NYC Parks Today with Commissioner Sue Donoghue

During this 12-episode podcast series NYC Parks has looked at the COVID-19 era of 2020-2021 through the lens of interviews conducted during the Oral History Project in 20

Aug 8 2023
28 min

#11 Summer of Unrest

Cadman Plaza, Brooklyn. This episode captures the memories of New York City Parks Department members as they recall the time period of social unrest during the COVID-19 c

Aug 1 2023
31 min

#10: Trees

Sept. 29, 2020. On this episode we are focusing on one topic: trees. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NYC Parks teams that work to preserve the green spaces of New York

Jul 25 2023
25 min

#9 One Leaf, One Team

Madison Square Park, April 14, 2020. During the COVID-19 pandemic the Parks Department leaned on its team on the frontlines extra hard to keep parks clean and green for t

Jul 18 2023
24 min

#8 Feeding New Yorkers

Hunts Point Recreation Center. During the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the biggest challenges facing New York City was food insecurity. As the scale of the pandemic grew, th

Jul 11 2023
23 min

#7 Washington Square Park

Going Green for Parkies, May 2021, Washington Square Arch. One of the most iconic parks in New York City is Washington Square Park, the jewel of Greenwich Village. During

Jun 27 2023
21 min

#6 Quarantine Ends and Parks Use Begins

Beach 17th Street Performance Space, Far Rockaway, Queens On this show we follow up on the use of parks and open space during the pandemic. From former Commissioner Mitch

Jun 13 2023
18 min

#5 Kiss the Bride & Hug a Tree

Alley Pond Park This episode is about parks as spaces that restore all of us, how parks were used during the pandemic in new and sometimes unusual ways, and how important

Jun 6 2023
26 min

#4 Learning Bridges & Recreation

Learning Bridges During the pandemic the NYC Parks Recreation Centers were closed to the public and all schools were closed. NYC Parks reopened some centers in 2020 as si

May 23 2023
20 min

#3 Why Parks and Public Service?

On this episode we interview three Parkies with connections to The Bronx and what drew them to public service. Why did they want to work for the NYC Parks Department? And

May 16 2023
19 min