About theKershaw Community Park Council
The Kershaw Community Park Council (KCPC) is deeply passionate about our local community park. Stevens Park is a beautiful 22-acre tract of land generously donated to the Town of Kershaw by John T. Stevens nearly 80 years ago, and it has been the heart of community life ever since.
Stevens Park features a remarkable natural wooded area that invites visitors to connect with nature and find renewal in the outdoors. Whether hiking the one-mile walking trail, enjoying the diverse native plant life, relaxing beside the spring-fed stream, sitting in the garden plaza, or simply running and playing in the open green spaces, the park offers refreshment, healthy activity, and enjoyment for all who enter. As John Muir wisely said, “Everyone needs a place to play in and pray in, where nature can heal and give strength to body and soul alike.” Stevens Park provides exactly that for the southern end of Lancaster County.
The park also offers an impressive variety of recreational amenities, including an outdoor pavilion for activities and family events, an exceptional skateboard park, the popular Welsh’s Station Playground for children ages 2–12, a regulation-size sand volleyball court, a first-rate 14-hole disc golf course, outdoor adult exercise equipment, and a shuffleboard court. A half-court basketball area, picnic tables, and an additional playground highlight the lower areas of the park.
At the center of the park is a beautiful garden plaza featuring patio seating, a stately gazebo, and the Nutramax Laboratories Picnic Shelter, surrounded by attractive and well-maintained plantings. Nestled within the park’s green spaces, straddling the flowing stream and surrounded by tall deciduous trees, is the Outdoor Educational Classroom and Amphitheater. This unique space provides seating for approximately 150 people and includes a stage and stadium lighting for evening programs. Smaller picnic shelters and seating areas are scattered throughout the park, offering peaceful places to rest, enjoy a picnic lunch, or listen to birdsong in the trees. A new YMCA-operated community swimming pool, bathhouse, and fitness center further enhance the park’s active and wellness opportunities.
Hiking the Stevens Park one-mile trail invigorates the heart, lungs, and body while offering five Environmental Education Boards along the way. These boards are family-friendly and engaging for children, and they are updated each spring and fall to highlight seasonal changes within the park. Children especially enjoy dipping nets into the spring-fed stream to observe tadpoles, salamanders, and frogs. These natural features provide excellent opportunities for students and visitors to learn about plants, wildlife, and the environment. Stevens Park truly serves as an outdoor classroom in every sense.
In addition to enhancing the park for greater activity, learning, and enjoyment, the KCPC hosts community and family-friendly events throughout the year. Looking ahead, we hope to add outdoor musical park instruments and a roof over the amphitheater stage to further enrich the Stevens Park experience for generations to come.