About 20 people attended the SPJ-DC pro chapter’s annual summer picnic Aug. 14 at YardsPark, next to the Anacostia River, in the shadow of Nationals Ballpark.
Somehow the dark rain clouds that plagued the metro area that day parted long enough for the sun to appear and a nice breeze to blow through, making for a pleasant afternoon a pleasant and allowing for the picnic to go off without hitch. Old members met new members, some of whom were attending their first chapter event. The general consensus was this new venue is a great place to have the picnic, and we’ll return.
We had the park’s “Overlook” section all to ourselves. This area overlooks the boardwalk that takes visitors along the river and up past the navy yard.
As the park’s website notes, it is considered DC’s new waterfront destination and centerpiece of the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood.
And here’s an interesting aside about the general area where the park is located – there’s a journalism connection of course.
At the nearby U.S. Department of Transportation, a walkway takes visitors past highlights of the history of transportation in the U.S. One of the panels of interest along the walk — and on the transportation building itself — is about Harriet Quimby, journalist and pilot.
Apparently, the Michigan-born Quimby wanted to be an actress but had a “nose for news” that led her into a career in journalism. In 1900 she worked for the San Francisco Bulletin and also freelanced. But she also was drawn to aviation. In 1911 she became the first woman in the U.S. to get a pilot’s license; in 1912 she became the first woman to fly across the English Channel. A 1991 U.S. airmail postage stamp featured Quimby.