Hurley Park hosts 30th spring celebration
Published 12:10 am Monday, April 3, 2017
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Groups of people gathered in Hurley Park on Sunday afternoon for the 30th annual spring celebration. The Salisbury Swing Band serenaded attendees who traveled to the park to enjoy the event
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Salisbury Swing Band member Jim Graczyk warms up before the start of the Hurley Park Spring Celebration on Sunday. The Salisbury Swing Band played music for the entirety of Sunday's event.
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Sarah McCubbins drives a horse-drawn carriage down a street adjacent to Hurley Park. The park hosted its 30th spring celebration on Sunday.
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - 9-year-olds Lily Cunningham, right, and Ellen Fry, left, pose for a picture aboard a horse-drawn carriage ride during Sunday's Hurley Park Spring Celebration.
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Anna Holmes Hurley, back left, Josh Hurley, back right, and Gerry Hurley, front, pose for a picture on Sunday during the 30th annual Hurley Park Spring Celebration.
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Connie Penniger Loflin (right) on Sunday paints during the Hurley Park Spring Celebration. She's a member of the Carolina ARtists Guild.
Josh Bergeron / Salisbury Post - Salisbury Mayor Karen Alexander, right, and N.C. Forest Service Rowan County Ranger David Poole help plant a tree on Sunday during the Hurley Park Spring Celebration. It was a Robinson Crabapple tree.
By Josh Bergeron
josh.bergeron@salisburypost.com
SALISBURY — Under a Carolina blue sky, a crowd of people on Sunday celebrated spring at Elizabeth Holmes Hurley Park.
Sunday marked the 30th Spring Celebration at Hurley Park. The Salisbury Swing Band serenaded attendees. A horse-drawn carriage carried people along Annandale Avenue. Children chased bubbles across a field. Attendees enjoyed refreshments.
Halfway through the event, the Hurley Park’s landscape architect Jane Ritchey announced the deck and trellis structure at the entrance would be dedicated to Jimmy Hurley, the former editor, publisher and head of the family who owned the Salisbury Post for more than 80 years. Sunday marked the fifth anniversary of Jimmy Hurley’s death.
A small plaque that now sits at the entrance to the park states the following: “Jimmy was a visionary and community leader who worked tirelessly on a wide range of charitable projects. None was closer to his heart than his mother’s park. He took a very active and supportive role in Hurley Park’s initial development and its continued maintenance. The deck is one of the major focal points of Hurley Park. It provides a key vantage point from which to view the pond, paths and gardens.”
Salisbury Mayor Karen Alexander also presented a proclamation naming April 2, 2017, Hurley Park’s 30th Annual Spring Celebration.
At Sunday’s event, Gordon Hurley, Jimmy’s youngest brother, said the park has always been an example of a good public-private partnership.
“I think it’s always been a good thing,” Gordon Hurley said. “I think it’s a wonderful park. It’s a quiet park and a massive park.”
Measuring 18 acres, Hurley Park is named for Jimmy and Gordon’s mother.
At the end of Sunday’s event, Hurley Park gained another tree when a group that included N.C. Forest Service Rowan County Ranger David Poole planted a Robinson crab apple tree in a section designated for ornamental fruits.
Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246.
