“The word that is always going through my head is ‘opportunity.’”

Jenna Lacey, 23, experience curator

When Jenna Lacey was studying art at UNCG, she never imagined her first job out of college would be managing programs and marketing for Greensboro’s downtown parks, LeBauer and Center City.

Yet in some ways, it makes perfect sense.

“It’s a blank canvas for interaction,” she says of LeBauer Park, which, at just one year old, is already among the city’s most beloved parks. “I knew I wanted to do something with people and community and creativity. I didn’t want to limit myself to one form of art. To me, art happens every day out there.”

Jenna’s part of the tiny nonprofit staff that makes these parks run, filling them with fun activities on a daily basis with the help of lots of community partners. From Saturday Kids Klub and bubble sports to movie nights and large-scale festivals, Jenna’s got her hands in most everything that happens here.

“I like getting lots of ideas and putting them into programs and events and curating activities and social spaces,” Jenna says.

This weekend, a project she conceived will come to life: Greensboro’s National Dance Day. It’s an evening of interactive dance performances that celebrate the city’s multi-culturalism.

Jenna sees endless possibilities about what Greensboro can do in these parks, if they just take ownership of them.

“I don’t want to copy what big cities have done. There are things Greensboro can do that have never been done before,” she says. “The word that is always going through my head is ‘opportunity.’ You can have an idea, and it’s not too big of a city that it gets lost.”

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