By Dave Pemberton
Clarkston News Sports Writer
Independence Oaks County Park said good-bye to a founding father on April 14 ? Ray Delasko retired after 37 years of stewardship.
Delasko helped design Independence Oaks, ran the park for over 35 year and made the grounds his home.
Independence Oaks has been good to Delasko, who was good to it. Delasko didn’t expect to be at the park so long when he took the job.
‘I thought it was going to be a stepping stone,? Delasko said. ‘What happened was they provided me with a house, which is a unique job situation because you can live where you actually work. I can walk to work. I don’t have to commute back and forth.
The park provided Delasko with a home on the park grounds, as well as a cell phone and a truck.
‘As the years progressed it became more personal,? Delasko said. ‘I didn’t look at it as a job, but more as part of my life. The park is part of my life. I raised my three boys here.?
Delasko’s three boys are all grown up now, with the youngest one in college. Ryan, Paul and Shawn are going to miss the house, but not as much as his wife, Joyce. She has enjoyed never having neighbors.
Retiring will give Delasko and his wife more time to spend with their three boys and their granddaughter Grace. Delasko said he also wants to start traveling and enjoying the holidays. He rarely got a holiday off while running the park.
Delasko never considered that when he decided to get into the field of parks and recreation.
He attended business school at University of Michigan-Flint, but found it boring. He saw the parks and recreation program in a Michigan State catalog so he set up a meeting with the program director.
The director told him the program was just starting, but he knew there was a need for more people in the field.
He graduated from Michigan State in 1971 and took a job with Oakland County Parks at Groveland Park, a camp ground park.
The job led him to getting the park supervisor job at Independence Oaks.
He worked with the designers of the park on where the trails should be; and once the park opened, set up how the park would work from scratch.
‘It was definitely a challenge,? Delasko said. ‘Usually when you go into a new job the setup is already there. Your desk is there and people explain to you this is your job, and you follow a routine.
‘There wasn’t any routine out here because nothing existed before. I was responsible for ordering the equipment and even setting up when you were going to mow the grass. There was no past history. I came in blind. It was a challenge to create and now it’s a well run park.?
When the park first opened, almost everything was ran from Delasko’s home. The park mechanics worked in his garage and his wife acted as the unofficial park secretary by answering his house phone.
Today, the park features a beach, boat rentals, a nature center and a gazebo for special events.
Delasko helped make the park into a great place for people to go and wildlife to live.
‘To see the park develop from a design on a sheet of paper to a reality is neat,? Delasko said. ‘Not many people can say, ‘I helped create this place.? I saw the park develop and it continues to develop. It took a while before people knew we were here. We were the best kept secret. Now people know.?
Independence Oaks is full of good memories for Delasko and some unusual ones. He remembers when construction began on the park. The construction workers found tons of rattlesnakes on the park grounds. He also remembers helping rescue a little girl, who got lost at the park, and another time when they had to battle a forest fire.
One of the more unusual incidents came during the park’s early years. A man was raising cattle near the south end of the park and one of his bulls got loose on park grounds.
‘One of my guys tried to lasso it and nearly got pulled out of the truck,? Delasko said. ‘The owner finally came and got a hold of it. The bull was like 1,500 pounds. You don’t want to mess with that.?
Delasko won’t miss problems like the bull, but there is plenty he will miss. He said he will miss the special events the most. In particular the classic car show, the hay rides and dressing up for Halloween.
He will also miss seeing some of the people he developed friendships with over the years, including former employees. He said many former employees worked while they were in college, but always came back to visit.
‘People who used to work here will bring their kids, and some of those kids would bring their kids,? Delasko said. ‘It was three generations of people coming back. When I saw that I thought, ‘Wow, I’ve been here a long time. Maybe it’s time for me to retire.? But people who work here always fall in love with the park.?
After 37 years as park supervisor, it’s likely nobody is more in love with Independence Oaks than Delasko.