The 2012 Mabry Park Preview was a resounding success. There was a tremendous turnout of area residents and the beautiful sunny Fall day was perfect for a walk in the park to enjoy Mabry Park's meadows, lake and woodlands. Pictures from this year's Mabry Park Preview can be seen in our online photo album.

A scene from the 2012 Mabry Park Preview.

A special THANK YOU goes out to all of our volunteers and Cobb County representatives who made this year's Park Preview such a fantastic event.

A large number of kids and their families participated and enjoyed the first annual Davis Elementary School Winter Festival's food, games, prizes, and other activities. Thanks goes out to Davis Elementary for allowing the Friends of Mabry Park to host a table where we answered lots of quesions.

Thank you, Dr. Dee Mobley, Principal. Go Tigers!

Please help us contact your neighborhood leaders. Just send an email to leaders@mabrypark.org and include the following information:

• The name of your neighborhood.
• Your HOA board email address or other contact (even if it's just you).
• Your neighborhood website address.
• Any other contact information.

As you consider the charities to which you plan to donate for the 2012 tax year, please don't forget Mabry Park. Your donation is tax-deductible and it's easy to do right now. Just click here.

The Friends of Mabry Park, a 501(c)3 non-profit volunteer organization, recently received new and annual donations ranging from $100 to $1000! Thank you to our existing sponsors and annual donors, and thank you for considering Mabry Park on your list for your charitable giving!

Friends of Mabry Park was at the Garrison Mill Elementary Fun Run and Movie Night on Friday, September 14. Lots of area residents dropped by the  Friends of Mabry Park table to say hello and show their support and look at the Master Plan

Thank you, Principal, Kyle Giesler. Go Greyhounds!

Here are a few ideas that might spark your interest:

• Grant writer.
• Webmaster or assistant.
• Volunteer coordinator.
• Social media assistant.
• Public relations volunteer.
• Business sponsorship coordinator.
• Event videographer.
• Park history researcher.

Contact us for more information at contact@mabrypark.org.

Formed in 2009, Friends of Mabry Park is a non-profit volunteer organization working with the local community, public officials and experts to support the development of Mabry Park, a passive park land located near the corner of Sandy Plains Road and Wesley Chapel Road.

Our mission is to raise funds to create Mabry Park; a park for current and future generations to connect with nature, history, and the community.

Mabry Park's 26.5 acres of beauty is currently "land-locked" and thus inaccessible to the public and even construction equipment. However, there is an easement for an access road in the future to the park land from Wesley Chapel Road.

Only after completion of this road, will the public have access to the land and construction of the park be possible. The access road is our first and perhaps biggest financial hurdle.

The Master Plan, which was paid for by the donations to the Friends of Mabry Park is the end result of a process that included citizen feedback and public meetings. The Master Plan is a conceptual design that basically specifies what goes where in the park.

Among the amenities, specified by the Master Plan are a playground, walking trails, community garden, pavilions, tree houses, a pond with an overlook bridge, a boardwalk across a wetlands area and, of course, plenty of open meadows.

The Parks Bond money only provides for the purchase of the green space land, not the development of park amenities. Without financial support from the community, Mabry Park will not be developed any time soon, if at all.

Private financial contributions also clearly demonstrates that the community is engaged in and committed to making Mabry Park a reality, which promotes the cause for additional funding support from the county and other public sources.

In November, 2006, Cobb voters approved a referendum asking the county to issue $40 million in bonds for the purchase new park land without increasing the debt millage rate. During the nomination phase that followed, a citizen advisory committee evaluated a number of submitted tracts and presented their list of properties to the Cobb County Board of Commissioners for final selection.

As part of this initiative, Cobb County acquired the Mabry Park property from Ed and Sue Mabry Harris. The Mabry family's roots run deep in this part of Cobb County. And the Mabry Farm is unique, having received the Centennial Farm Award in recognition of it being a working farm run by the Mabry family for over 100 years.

We have come a long way since our founding in 2009. We funded and helped promote public involvement in the development of the Master Plan. We continue to strengthen awareness through our social media outreach, participation in local community events, engagement with the local school system and neighborhood homeowner associations, and the successful execution of two Mabry Park Previews.

For more details, click here.

PMB #173
4651 Woodstock Road #208
Roswell, GA 30075
contact@mabrypark.org

 - Lee Berg: President
 - Peter Hortman: Vice President
 - Debra Kushnick: Secretary
 - Mary Berg: Treasurer
 - Robin Hoban: Fundraising
 - Hania Whitfield: Marketing