The city of Rincon dedicated its first park on the city’s west side Sunday afternoon under a beautiful blue sky and with a nice crowd on hand to help with the ceremony. The park was dedicated to long-time community leader Peter J. Giles Jr.

“It is an honor and a pleasure for me to stand here and be a witness to this honor,” Giles said. He said he never would have thought that Rincon would grow to have 3 parks.

“I’m overwhelmed,” he said. “My name is on this park, but it’s our park.”

The ceremony started with music by the Community Youth Choir, made up of members of the Goodwill Missionary Baptist and the Bethel AME churches. Rincon Councilman Levi Scott, got things started by telling a little of the history of the park and Giles’ role in its creation. He said that Mr. Giles had been involved in organizing youth activities in Rincon for years.

Other speakers included Charles Bradley, representing the Sons of Allen, a group Giles has been very active in; Homer Wallace of the NAACP; Lucy Powers, representing the MLK Jr. Day Parade group; Rev. R. Nathaniel Neal of New Bethel AME Church; and Mayor Ken Lee of Rincon.

Lee said Giles has long been recognized as a community leader and has served on the Planning Commission for the city.

Scott said that the process for the park began back in the fall of 1996 when the city began looking for a suitable piece of property on the west side. He said the deed giving this parcel to the city was signed in 1998.

Scott also said that once he and Lee were elected, the park became a priority project for the city. He also reminded the audience that this was “their park” and that with inheritance comes the responsibility to preserve it for future generations. He also reminisced about his father working with Giles to encourage people in the community to stop paying their taxes, “in order to get the county’s attention,” so a road could be paved in their area.