Lady Liberty Loves the Friends of Liberty State Park

Miss Liberty wants to give a big shout out and an ever-loving Thank You to the Friends of Liberty State Park.

The Friends are a volunteer and non-profit organization that devotes their time to protecting, preserving and promoting Liberty State Park.

Without them there would be no beautiful setting to hold the All Points West Music and Arts Festival, no space for people of all ages to play and relax, no free, public park for the city dwellers to bring their families and picnic behind the worlds greatest symbol of freedom and democracy, which of course happens to be me, yours truly.

Throughout the 19^th and 20^th century, the land that is now the park housed the Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal. The railroad played a major role in this region’s and our nation’s history. Two- thirds of the 12 million immigrants who went through Ellis Island came next to this hub to start their American lives where anything is possible.

However, the decline of the railroad industry brought on the fall of the Central Railroad and the land that is now Liberty State Park was reduced to nothing more than a desolate wasteland complete with abandoned, rail yards, decaying piers and piles of garbage.

Until a man named Morris Pesin came along with a vision. Miss Liberty considers him an American Hero for the gift he created for the public here in Jersey City.

The great Mr. Pesin had the idea to create the park on a traffic-filled day while taking his Jersey City family to visit me. He was struck by how close yours truly, Miss Lady Liberty, was to the derelict Jersey City shoreline.

A year later, with a reporter, he took a canoe ride from Jersey City to my island to dramatize our close proximity and to launch the campaign to make my eyesore neighbor into a free and green park with ferry access to me and Ellis Island.

He then spearheaded an 18 year citizens’ movement to establish the park which officially opened on Flag Day, June 14^th, 1976.

Today the park is an urban open space for picnicking and unstructured recreation, with miles of paths to enjoy.

In 1988, park-loving activists, guided by park pioneers Morris Pesin, Audrey Zapp and Ted Conrad formed The Friends of Liberty State Park. Yearly, from 2006-2009, their volunteers planted 60,000 flower bulbs and they spent $15,000 dollars on trees in an effort to beautify the park.

The Friends advocate for the welfare of the park and its users and have made it through some very difficult times, often needing to mobilize statewide coalitions to stop commercial plans such as a golf course and a commercial water park.

The park itself was a safe haven during the September 11^th attacks on the World Trade Center. On Arbor Day 2003, The Friends’ president, Sam Pesin, son of the park’s “father”, Morris Pesin, spoke at the dedication ceremony of the peaceful Grove of Remembrance, planted as a tribute to the New Jersey residents that were killed during the attacks.

Liberty State Park is a retreat from the hustle and bustle of everyday city living.

To stand in the middle of the 1,122 acres paths, water, green meadows, and recreational space and see me holding my torch high and to overlook one of the most inspiring city skylines in the nation is an incredible experience.

I would just like to recognize the Friends of Liberty State Park for the huge role they play in making that experience possible. And to thank them for their blessing of the wonderful All Points West Music and Arts Festival which I hope will happen for a hundred years to come ‘cause you know Miss L loves her music.

Long live freedom, democracy, and my blessed Rock n Roll

Miss Liberty