Yazoo City's new Parks and Recreation Director has big plans to reconnect people to the various ball fields and playgrounds all over town.
Starting on October 1, Sedric Hudson Sr. will be implementing his new plans to rehabilitate the existing parks in Yazoo City, as well as start new programs that will include children and adults.
Born and raised in Benton, Hudson is the grandson of former Deputy Sherriff Roosevelt "Wolf Lake" Hudson.
He later moved to Yazoo City and graduated from Yazoo City High School in 1999. While in high school, Hudson ran track and played basketball under Coach Archie Carlisle.
After graduating high school, Hudson attended Holmes Junior College and later transferred to Alcorn State University. There he graduated in 2005 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies.
Hudson said that after he left Alcorn, he was blessed to go to work with the Yazoo City Municipal School District coaching girls and boys basketball, cross country, track and football.
After spending six years with the school district, Hudson changed careers and joined the Yazoo City Fire Department in 2011, where he served as a lieutenant captain, working his way up to the position of battalion chief.
In that capacity, Hudson managed and supervised shifts for roughly seven to eight personnel.
Hudson is married to Katrina Hudson, and they have three children, Kimora, 8, Jada, 4, and Sedric Jr., 1.
Hudson said he was blessed with the opportunity to become the Director of the Parks and Recreation after making an excellent presentation in his interview about his proposed changes to improve the quality of Yazoo City's parks and recreational areas.
"My main focus is going to be bringing programs and activities for the youth, adults, and also for senior citizens here, in both the city and the county," said Hudson, "And I would also like to get our parks up to par with other successful cities around our area."
One major goal Hudson has is to use grant money to improve or refurbish the playground equipment at Campanella park, including the jungle gym and swing sets that have become dilapidated with age.
Hudson also mentioned restructuring the picnic tables and benches at 19th Street Park and turning the pond located there into a more accessible fishing spot.
"It's time to bring some new up-scale things to Yazoo City and just turn our whole department around," said Hudson.
Hudson's plan is to find things that are still useful such as swing set frames and jungle gyms, repaint them and add new swings and other small improvements that will bring new life into the already existing structures on the playgrounds.
Hudson draws his inspiration from other parks and recreation departments, such as Strawberry Patch Park and Liberty Park in Madison County, whose vibrant colors and stimulating playgrounds attract visitors.
Hudson has a plan for every park that falls under the care of his department, including enhancing the tennis courts near Sam Nicolas Field and adding sand volleyball pits to Campanella Park and the Wardell Leach Complex.
Another main goal that Hudson has is that he wants to host a variety of tournaments all year long, including softball, volleyball, baseball, basketball and much more, to help generate money for their budget.
Hudson plans to evaluate all the playground equipment within the park areas for safety concerns, and posting notices and taping off equipment that he feels is unsafe for children until they can be removed or refurbished for continued use.
"One main thing we are looking for is community partnerships through businesses, not only in the city, but in the county as well." he said, "We aren't going to get to the top without the community's help."
The first program that the Parks and Recreation Commission will be starting in October will be a Trunk-or-Treat and a Halloween Egg Hunt at the Wardell Leach Complex, on Saturday, Oct. 28 at 3 p.m. This program will be a safe trick-or-treating option for the children of Yazoo City and will also allow members of the community to join together to celebrate the holiday in a safe environment.
Even though Hudson doesn't officially start his new job as director of parks and recreation until next month, he is spending a great deal of time focusing on the job ahead and how to improve the city's parks for the people of the community.
