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Miami-Dade County’s Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department has collaborated with O, Miami poetry festival and artist Aileen Neri to engage the community with poem geocaching.
Neri worked closely with Miami-Dade Parks to select 22 parks across the county to discreetly drop boxes containing original poems for park-goers to find. The exact coordinates of the boxes were uploaded viz the Geocaching app (available for download via the Apple Store or Google Play). Users can interact with the geocache to find poems throughout Miami-Dade Parks during Miami Poetry Month.
Within the geocache boxes will be a unique poem prompted by the surrounding neighborhood. There also will be some freebees, available first come, first served, and a notebook where users are encouraged to write their own poems, write their reaction to the original poem, or simply write their name and a message to the next person who finds the box.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who is a vocal advocate for the arts in Miami-Dade, said, “I am a strong believer that the arts unite a community and bring people together with a long-lasting sense of purpose, which is why I recently named our very own Richard Blanco as Miami-Dade’s first poet laureate.
“This collaboration between Miami-Dade Parks and O, Miami is the perfect combination of our four guiding principles — equity, engagement, economy and environment — as our residents can have equal access to enjoy the beauty of the arts, participate in their community, enjoy the nature in our county and stimulate our economy as we become a cultural Mecca,” the mayor added.
“Miami-Dade Parks are the perfect place for the community to come and get lost in nature with a good book, or poem,” said Miami-Dade Parks director Maria Nardi. “I know O, Miami’s mission is for every person in Miami to encounter a poem in the month of April, and what better place to stumble upon a poem than at a park?”
The complete list of parks where you can find a hidden poem is as follows: Crandon, Biscayne Gardens, Arcola Lakes, Haulover, Historic Military Trail, Benito Juarez, Amelia Earhart, Women’s Park, Kendale Lakes, Lake Stevens, Greynolds, Matheson Hammock, Larry and Penny Thompson, Schenley Park, Briar Bay, Ruben Dario, San Jacinto, Homestead Air Reserve, Indian Hammocks, A.D. (Doug) Barnes, Eden Lakes, and North Shorecrest Park.
“Poetry and parks brought me all the peace in the world during the pandemic,” said poet Aileen Neri, who spearheaded this collaboration. “I’d visit my neighborhood parks in West Kendall and I’d draw and read poetry for hours after work for the better part of two years.
“Putting the two together is basically a dream realized, and being able to share with everyone in Miami-Dade County feels like a great way to build community all around and drive O, Miami’s mission to provide access to poetry for all. I hope folks who engage with Geocaching find inspiration in being outside and experiencing the beautiful words and unmatched sights.”
Patrons are reminded to leave the box behind after they find the poem. The box is there to be enjoyed in the moment and left for another person to find and experience. Poetry boxes will be available to engage with through the end of May. Be sure to share your findings on social media and tag @MiamiDadeParks and @OMiamiFestival.
