Kinston/Lenoir County Parks Director is the Man Behind the Curtain
head of the kinston-lenoir county parks and recreation department, neuse river,
As head of the Kinston/Lenoir County Parks and Recreation Department, Bill Ellis does a lot more than run the local park system.
He’s credited as being the major force behind the revival of the Neuse River. Nobody did more work than Ellis to bring in more visitors in the last two years to the Neuse River than there had been in 20, says local businessman Tommy Pressley, who was co-chair of a committee to develop a thriving waterfront. Pressley says Ellis oversaw the big job of thinning out trees and shrubs – just so more people could see the river.
Ellis, who has been with the parks and recreation department for 28 years, downplays his role and credits his staff.
“I’ve been very fortunate to be able to work with some great people in the rec department that care about others more than they do themselves,” says Ellis, who was named Kinston’s Citizen of the Year in 2007.
The 51-year-old still has a lot of responsibilities. One of them is maintaining a big cultural tradition in Kinston: baseball. His department has the daunting task of overseeing 200 youth baseball and softball teams. The parks and recreation department also runs the youth ball tournaments in Kinston, which is big business for the city, attracting tens of thousands of young people and their families from across the country each year.
Ellis, who is married and proudly says he has a son who just started Marine flight school, believes he is lucky to have a great job.
“If you can’t enjoy letting people play in your parks, you can’t enjoy anything,” he says.
Story by Sheila Burke
