This week, Marana welcomes D. Tyrell McGirt, who is joining the Town’s Parks and Recreation Department as the deputy director. D. Tyrell comes to Marana with significant experience in the parks and recreation field, and the Town is eager to benefit from his fresh perspectives.
Prior to moving to Marana, D. Tyrell served as the Director of Parks, Culture, and Recreation in Unalaska, a small community in the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska. In that role, he demonstrated capable and effective leadership through a number of initiatives, including developing a vision and mission for his department. His passion for parks and recreation also enabled him to educate his colleagues, elected leaders, and neighbors about the importance of parks and recreation.
“I sincerely believe that leisure activities, recreation, and sports play an essential role in adults and children living active, balanced, and healthy lives.,” affirms D. Tyrell. “In Marana, residents already enjoy a wide variety of recreational opportunities, and I look forward to building on that legacy.”
One area in which D. Tyrell is particularly well qualified is in the world of aquatics. In his home state of North Carolina, he helped open Charlotte’s first indoor water park, Ray’s Splash Planet, in addition to starting a junior lifeguard program. He also served as the Aquatics Coordinator for the YMCA of Greater Charlotte. The desert environment of Marana means that aquatics activities are in demand much of the year, and so these experiences particularly qualify D. Tyrell for this role.
As he takes on his new responsibilities in Marana, D. Tyrell will quickly get to experience many of Marana’s high quality recreational programming. Throughout the fall and winter, the Town offers free guided hikes in the Tortolita Mountains. In addition, there is a Turkey Trot this Saturday, November 12, at Crossroads Park, as well as an official leg of El Tour de Tucson next Saturday, November 19, starting at Gladden Farms Community Park. Then, on Saturday, December 3, D. Tyrell will get to experience his first Marana Signature Event at the Holiday Festival and Christmas Tree Lighting, when thousands of residents will get to celebrate the holidays with the most spectacular Christmas tree light show in Southern Arizona.
As if all that weren’t enough, Marana’s Parks and Recreation department hosts a full calendar of on-going activities, including Zumba classes, martial arts programming, and classes that fuse music and visual art.
“I can’t wait to get involved in all of these efforts,” explains D. Tyrell. “I can already tell that Marana is a great community where I’m going to have a lot of fun.”
