Winters is a man for all seasons at Hempfield Rec

Jason Winters will discuss, evaluate and then plan the future of Hempfield parks and recreation.

Winters, 30, of North Huntingdon began as director of the township department on July 9.

In his spare time, he is a PIAA official, handling games in Cranberry one weekend and in Washington the next.

“I'm doing a lot of listening and learning,” Winters said. “From the input of the supervisors and the residents, I'll be putting a plan together for the next three to five years.”

Winters takes the helm after Dean Minerva was let go 10 months ago for financial irregularities with cash deposits and registrations. He has paid back the township and is serving probation in a program that will permit him to expunge any criminal record.

Winters, who has a background in computer and information technology, will be tracking and quickly responding to the interests of residents, forming email lists and developing appropriate marketing.

He praised the new online system to register for activities.

“To register with a credit card will be convenient, especially since Hempfield is so big. People can still drop off registrations at the park office, but this is 2012 and people use credits cards and the computer,” Winters said.

“There is a great staff here. Now I'm here to bring leadership and stability to the department to better serve the residents,” he said.

He knows it will take a full year to get the feel of every event once. One of the biggest, Hempfield Community Days, will be held Sept. 8 and 9.

Winters, a 2000 graduate of McKeesport Area High School, was involved as production assistant for its musicals. For five years, he helped to plan the festivals at St. Martin dePorres Roman Catholic Church, his former parish. While serving as an intern for the city, he was involved with organizing McKeesport's International Village event.

“I'm a big-picture thinker,” Winters said. “My interests have always been with event planning.”

He came from St. Vincent College as director of campus life for the last five years, organizing and overseeing activities for 1,800 students outside the classrooms and residence halls at the Unity campus.

“I handled all intramural events,” said Winters, a 2004 St. Vincent graduate who holds a master's degree in education from Geneva College. “On any given night, there were about 200 students involved in an activity until 10 p.m.”

He saw a need to engage parents, so he created the Bearcat Connection, a popular family weekend program held in the spring and fall.

He is a certified member of the Collegiate Softball Umpire Association and the American Softball Association.

He met his wife, Dana Puglisi of Washington, Pa., when they were undergraduate students at St. Vincent. They have a daughter, Clare, who just turned 2.

Both are Pirates fans who have visited 14 of the 30 Major League stadiums. Their daughter has already been to the stadiums in Cleveland and in Washington, D.C.

The best part is that she is somewhat of a good luck charm, going to 10 games so far, with the Pirates winning every time.

“I don't worry about politics and do the best job possible,” Winters said about leading the parks and recreation department. “It's about making sure we're doing what people want and getting feedback.”

Chairman Douglas Weimer of the board of supervisors said Winters has the qualities they were looking for to lead the department.

“I am very pleased we were able to find a strong candidate to fill this vacancy,” Weimer said. “Jason exhibits strong managerial skills in leading staff and he definitely possesses a strong work ethic.”

Visitors will no longer go to the side entrance when stopping at the parks and recreation office.

Winters' department is in the process of moving into space within the main entrance of the building.

Rose Domenick is a freelance writer.