Welcome to FSP’s New Executive Director, Meloney McMurry
The Board and Staff of Friends of Stewart Park are pleased to announce that Meloney McMurry has been hired as our next Executive Director.
Meloney brings broad experience in not-for-profit management and local
government, having worked as an attorney, urban planner, local government official and community volunteer.
Meloney has always had a deep appreciation for our local parks and a
love of planning and placemaking with a particular focus on access and equity. She was a member of FSP's Playground Leadership Committee for the playground capital campaign in 2017.
Most recently, Meloney served as program manager of Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Way2Go transportation education program, where she worked to find sustainable solutions to the region’s diverse transportation needs.
Previously, Meloney served the Village of Cayuga Heights as Deputy Mayor and as a Village Trustee, and is a current member of the VCH Planning Board. Meloney also served as the Chair of the Policy Committee of the Ithaca Tompkins County Transportation Council, working with other local leaders on county-wide transportation planning initiatives.
Before moving to Ithaca, Meloney worked as an urban planner in San Francisco, and spend almost a decade as a land use attorney in New York City. Meloney graduated from Harvard College and completed a law degree at Columbia University as well as a Masters of Urban Planning at NYU. Meloney is a former Girl Scout Troop Leader, a 4-H Club organizer, and an active school volunteer.
Meloney says it was when she previously served on the playground fundraising committee of Friends of Stewart Park that she learned first-hand about the great work that FSP does in our community.
We are excited to have her on board and look forward to everyone meeting her!
From Meloney McMurry
I have always loved Stewart Park. It’s a place where you get a sense of being part of the city, while also feeling connected to our local natural wonder, Cayuga Lake. In fact, it was while standing in Stewart Park on an unusually warm March day over a decade ago that I decided to raise my family in Ithaca. To be starting as Executive Director of FSP feels like a full circle moment.
Over Twenty Years of Waterfront Transformation
Rick Manning co-founded Friends of Stewart Park in 2011 and has been its Executive Director since. Before that, Rick worked with the Waterfront Trail Initiative through the Tompkins Chamber Foundation beginning in 2001, creating the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. Rick’s vision, dedication, enthusiasm, and hard work have made a lasting impact on our community. While Rick is retiring as Executive Director, FSP is pleased that he is staying on in a consulting capacity, focusing on the park's landscape, the Wharton Studio & Cafe project and Cayuga Waterfront Trail enhancements.
This will give him a lot more freedom to spend time with his wife Sally, son Thomas and soon-to-be daughter-in-law Payton. Rick has plans for more bike riding and playing music. He invites you to check out his Winter Village Music Camp and concerts.
From Rick Manning
We are excited to welcome Meloney McMurry to the friends team. She knows our organization well having participated on our playground fundraising committee. Her involvement with cooperative extensions Way to Go project which focused on active and alternative transportation will help FSP strengthen waterfront trail and park connections to adjacent city neighborhoods and other regional trails. She’s experienced, organized and ready to take FSP to the next step in its evolution.
Friends of Stewart Park is proud of our work in Stewart Park and on the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. Your support helps this revitalization continue. Your tax-deductible year end gift is integral to continuing our mission in a new era for FSP.
Thank you!
