March 25, 2013

Last year, we were proud to introduce an expanded downtown Portland Parks & Recreation Rangers program throughout our city’s parks and natural areas.

On Saturday, The Oregonian featured Park Ranger Katie Gribbon and her partner, Ranger Dustin Meyers, for their work with some of our most frequent park-goers in the winter - people experiencing homelessness.

Katie has a passion for reaching out to our community’s most vulnerable. She connects with people to learn what they need, and how she can be of service. Some decline help, but that doesn’t stop her from always making that connection.

Katie and Dustin hand out resource guides, gloves, hot cocoa, and other basic needs to those sleeping outside. In return, many have become allies for the Rangers - an extra set of eyes in the city’s parks when rangers aren’t there.

Compassion is what steers the rangers to do the right thing. Katie explains that “it’s always good when someone knows that they have even one person supporting them.” The rangers look at themselves as “park ambassadors” – not just rule enforcers.

Thank you Katie and Dustin for the wonderful work you do to support our parks and community members.

Rangers help ease winter for a park regular:the homeless

Sara Hottman in The Oregonian