They have the Ramseys to thank for some of the welcoming energy behind the spot: For more than 30 years, the couple has de-rocked, mowed, watered and kept an eye on the park-lette. On Thursday, they'll be honored with the 2005 County Parks Steward Award, for exceptional and tireless work supporting parks in the county.
“Parks don't have to be elaborate,” says Phyllis Ramsey. “As long as it is mowed and weeded and watered, kids can have fun. In fact, I think they have more fun without a lot of equipment, so they can just run around and come up with their own games.”
More than a dozen neighborhood kids - including most of the Ramseys' six, who grew up enjoying the park - were recruited to pick up the rocks. Frank supplied his Chevy pickup to haul the rocks away.
Neighbors started mowing the weeds, and kids started to play there. In about 1985, Frank took over some of the mowing, and he continues to do some today.
The Ramseys said they aren't the only O'Connell Park angels: Many others deserve credit, for getting Lolo School students to build picnic tables, for installing sprinkler systems, for helping with weeding, for planting trees, for installing a small climbing structure and play tires.
The Ramseys are fans of the county's community grant programs for parks. Twice a year, groups or individuals can apply for grants to improve their neighborhood parks, matching the money with cash, volunteer time or donated goods, said Sue Brown, chairwoman of the County Parks Board.
Those grants, matched by sweat equity and know-how from Lolo neighbors, helped set up a solar system that now runs the park's sprinklers, said the Ramseys, who hand-watered for years, using their own hoses and water.
The county has no maintenance crews and only one part-time staffer to handle about 100 parks, small to large, outside the city limits.
“This example of the Ramseys shows how these pieces of green spaces can become a place for the whole community to gather, for the neighborhood kids to play,” said Lisa Moisey, the part-timer charged with overseeing parks in the county. “They've really stepped up; it's a lot of work.”
“This is the only way things get done,” Brown said. “It takes a group, or a homeowners association, or individual volunteers to take on the responsibility of their park. One person can change a patch of dirt into a park.”
The Ramseys, the third winners of the award, receive a plaque, and their names are added to a perpetual plaque that hangs in the Missoula Public Library. Previous winners are the Hellgate Lions Club, which maintains a large county park in West Riverside-Bonner, and developer Lloyd Twite and volunteer Charlie Brown, for their work on parks in Linda Vista.
Summertime games, a large croquet course and wintertime snowmen are all fond memories from O'Connell Park, the Ramseys said. One of their granddaughters planted a tiny tree in the park as a preschooler; she's now graduating from college.
A moment of pride came when a nearby home went up for sale, advertising “a well-maintained neighborhood park,” Frank Ramsey said.
The Ramseys, both in their 70s, are content to turn over the park's care to others.
“I love seeing the kids run and hearing them holler,” said Phyllis. But, “we are hoping more younger families want to get involved. There is still a lot that can be done.”
Pocket park honors
The Missoula County Parks Board and Missoula County commissioners will honor Phyllis and Frank Ramsey in a ceremony at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in Room 201 of the Missoula County Courthouse Annex.
Reporter Mea Andrews can be reached at 523-5246 or at mandrews@missoulian.com
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