About us

Sherry Bell

Cheryl Bell
Parks and Recreation Director
377 Hiller Dr.
Biloxi, MS 39533

(228) 388-7170 voice
(228) 388-2489 fax

Fun for Everyone

The Biloxi Parks and Recreation Department is responsible for a broad range of leisure activities for all Biloxians. Under the department’s control are 55 facilities, including 35 parks, three community centers, a natatorium, a recreation center, the Saenger Theater, a sports complex and the Town Green.

The department offers many programs for all ages and interests. Some of these include programs for senior citizens, swim lessons, programs for the disabled and team sports. All of these except team sports are free.

Putting on events and festivals is also one of the department’s responsibilities. These include a Christmas parade, a black history program, an end-of-school pool party, the senior games, an Easter egg hunt on the Town Green. a junior high prom and a weekly farmers’ market held on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“We provide programs, sports, special events, etc., for Biloxians from birth to senior citizens,” said Sherry Bell, director of the department.

The department handles the logistics, tables, chairs and tents for all events on its own. It is responsible for picking up trash downtown before baseball games and sometimes along U.S. Highway 90, as well.

“We do it all.” said Bell, who has led the department for six years. “My department does whatever’s asked of us.”

Beautification including landscaping, mowing and picking up trash is one of the major challenges that the department faces. As such, Bell is hoping to start a litter patrol to cover certain areas of the city. Another of Bell’s goals for the department is for every park in the city to be a neighborhood park, meaning that a person or organization from the community will help care for the park.

The department often works closely with other agencies and organizations including the Mississippi Recreation and Parks Association (MRPA), which Bell is a District Representative of. Most of the department’s programs for children younger than five years old are done in partnership with Excel By 5, a state program emphasizing the role communities have on the proper development of children by age five. Also, groups like Mississippi Power Community Connection have done community service projects with the department.

The department is located at 377 Hiller Drive and can be contacted at 228-388-7170.

 

–Charlie Benton, Public Affairs Intern, 7/2015