Archive: Around Town

Go up the hill past Bill Cook's dealership behind the Triphammer Mall, and follow Uptown Road to the right and you will come upon the Village of Lansing's two parks.  A small park for children is on the right, and on the left is Philip R. Dankert Park.  While many such municipal landmarks are named posthumously, Phil Dankert is very much alive, continuing to give back to his community after almost 30 years of volunteerism.


Now retired from his position as Collection Development Librarian at the Industrial & Labor Relations (ILR) library at Cornell, Dankert began volunteering for youth groups in the late '70s when his sons became interested in joining the Cub Scouts.  "I went to a meeting of Cub Scout Pack 2," Dankert says.  "I thought they might be interested.  Well, good old Phil, in those days it was hard to say no.  I came out as Cubmaster!"

That was the beginning of an impressive string of volunteer positions, most of which were aimed at helping youth.  Even when he didn't know much about a sport, he found other volunteers to help him coach youth teams.  "I like to work with the little kids," he says.  "My parents volunteered, and it was instilled in me to give something back to your community."

That lesson must have taken hold, because Dankert coached Kiwanis baseball for eight years, softball for one year, was program advisor for Cayuga Heights, involved with the North East School Ski Programs for eight Years, gave his time to the Ithaca Youth Hockey Association in various capacities for over 7 years, spent ten years in various positions on the  Ithaca Youth Board of Advisors, and served on every committee on the Tompkins County Youth Board, where he holds the record as the longest serving member, having spent 16 years volunteering there.  And that's a partial list!  "I've been keeping busy over the years," he says modestly.

The Village named the park for Dankert to honor all volunteers in youth programs as embodied by Dankert's example.  "There is no better way to demonstrate the commitment to our youth than by honoring the volunteer citizens who really keep the fire going under the kettle," said then Village Mayor Ted Wixom when he rededicated the park 11 years ago.

The nicely manicured park has a soccer field, a baseball field, a basketball hoop, a bicycle rack, and a pavilion with picnic tables.  It's open daily from sunrise to 10 pm.  Dankert says that Village Superintendent of Public Works John Courtney and Motor Equipment Operator Rick Beckwith do a great job of keeping the park looking beautiful.  He stops by occasionally to drink a cup of coffee, and enjoys seeing the park used as he drives by.  "It's so nice now -- I see the young kids practice soccer.  They play basketball." 


Adults also spend time in the park for a nice place to be, either parked in their cars or out on the fields.  Ken Pease stops by on his lunch hour to shoot hoops.  Pease works at Smith Marketing on Brown Road, just across Route 13.  "It's beautiful here," he says.  "I found it by mistake.  I drove by one day when I was lost.  Then I said, 'How did I get here?'"  He comes two or three times a week while the weather is nice.

A young looking 71, Dankert continues to volunteer on a youth board or two, at Hospicare, and the Lansing Volunteer Fire Department, where he has been for about 25 years.  He has been honored several times including a Tompkins Trust Company Award for Excellence.  And he seems overwhelmed by having a park named for him.  "It's such an honor to drive by here and see my name on a simple sign that honors you for doing what you thought was important," he says.  "It's incredible."


But he takes even more joy from just volunteering, especially when it means working with kids.  "These plaques mean a lot to me, but what means more to me is... one of the years I was coaching Kiwanis baseball the young kids gave me this: 'To Coach Dankert, Many thanks for another fine season of the 1984 Red Socks.'"  He says that really shows why he loves volunteering.

Dankert and his wife Ginny have 3 children.  David works at the William A. George Agency.  "He's working with youth from a totally different perspective," Dankert says.  Greg lives in California where he works for Nextel.  Daughter Kate lives outside of Rochester and works for Verizon.  He has 6 grandchildren.  On top of his volunteer work, he serves on the Village Planning Board.

Having his name on a park has had some unexpected side effects.  "Ginny had at least one incident where people wanted to express their condolences over the demise of her husband," Dankert recalls.  "She laughed and said, 'Well it doesn't say Phillip R. Dankert Memorial Park!'"  He's still alive and kicking and showing by example the great value of volunteering.

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