Orland names new recreation director

Orland has a new recreation director with the promotion of Joe Fenske this month.

Fenske served as former director Garrett White's assistant for three years, he said, and he is knowledgeable about Orland's programs having run several of them.

He has been in charge of the department since White's departure in December.

White left after six years in Orland to move to Idaho.

"I did maintenance of the fields, ran the softball programs and ran the youth camps." Fenske said. "I did mostly the outside work with people."

Fenske grew up in Orland and currently lives in Corning.

He said in the short term he plans to continue White's programs as planned for the summer such as the youth sports camps, softball and baseball and more.

In addition, Fenske wants to get the recreation center facility occupied Monday through Friday evenings, and provide "everybody in Orland with something," he said, "whether it is co-ed baseball or cardio kickboxing."

The city staff from City Hall to the public works department has been "extremely helpful," he said. "I absolutely love it."

Fenske, 26, graduated from Corning High School in 2002.

From there, he went to Shasta College in Redding and received a general education degree, he said.

He graduated in 2007 from Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kansas with a degree in sports management and business administration - then finished his internship at the Orland Recreation Department in December of that year.

A stint as secondary football coach for Malone University in Canton, Ohio followed, but he returned to Orland after that.

His dream job is to be a football coach, Fenske said, but coming back to manage the programs and fields "where I learned to love sports is an awesome job."

Successful programs in Orland include adult fast pitch baseball is popular along with adult basketball that had 13 teams.

Youth sports camps start June 7 for the summer and will run through August, he said, and youth T-ball and soccer leagues are big too.

For more information on recreation programs, call 865-1630 or go by the recreation center on Hambright Avenue behind Lely Aquatic Park.

Contact Rick Longley at 934-6800 or rlongley@tcnpress.com.