Longtime employee Keith Watson has been promoted to superintendent of Sports for the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District. The job is based at THPRD’s Howard M. Terpenning Recreation Complex at 158th and Walker Road, Beaverton.
Watson will oversee programming and fiscal management for the Sports Department, which includes the Tualatin Hills Athletic Center and Babette Horenstein Tennis Center; coordinate THPRD’s sports partnerships with the Beaverton School District and affiliated sports leagues; and recruit local, regional and national tournaments and other sporting events to district facilities.
Watson joined THPRD in 1990 as a seasonal worker in Athletic Facilities Maintenance. He worked his way through a series of increasingly responsible positions in that group until 2013, when he was appointed Park Maintenance supervisor, a job he held until his latest promotion.
Aisha Panas, director of Park & Recreation Services, said Watson was selected for “his proven ability to build relationships and manage change.” Among his priorities, she said, are ensuring consistent service delivery for the many sports participants and tournament users that play and compete within the park district.
Watson, who will move into his new role on Nov. 7, said his goals also include determining new and alternative sports programming and expanding the district’s adaptive and inclusive recreation program.
“I’m especially excited for the addition of our new Champions Too Field,” he noted. Champions Too, Oregon’s first athletic field for athletes of all abilities, will be part of a 21.5-acre community park in Aloha that THPRD is currently building and planning to open in the fall of 2017.
About THPRD
Formed in 1955, THPRD is the largest special park district in Oregon, spanning 50 square miles and serving about 240,000 residents in the greater Beaverton area. The district provides year-round recreational opportunities for people of all ages and abilities. Offerings include thousands of widely diverse classes, 95 park sites with active recreational amenities, nearly 70 miles of trails, eight swim centers, six recreation centers, and about 1,500 acres of natural areas. For more information, visit www.thprd.org or call 503-645-6433.
| Contact: Bob Wayt Director – Communications 503/614-1218 (direct) 503/686-5134 (cell) |
Date: October 27, 2016 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Click here for official release (PDF). |