David Gray Email & Phone Number

Peoria, Il, Us

Peoria, Illinois, United States

In my new role of Recruitment & Professional Development Manager, I am thrilled to focus on bringing the best talent to our positions at the Peoria Park District and to fully support those who are with us already. I will also be recruiting, placing, training, educating and supporting High School and College level student interns for a wide variety of positions, while facilitating our workforce development vision. I will continue to support our outstanding Volunteer Department, our Wellness Program, and our Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility mission each day.

Peoria, Illinois Area

Recently transitioned into a new role as Manager of Human Resources with my longtime employer, the Peoria Park District.

My position began as the coordinator for the Gateway Building Banquet & Conference Center where I worked with corporate clients, and private individuals to plan meetings, banquets, weddings, press conferences. I gave facility tours, created contracts, designed floor plans, hired & trained staff on job duties including use of the Audio Visual system. This position also involved communication with caterers, florists, DJ's, bands, wedding & corporate planners.In the spring of 2005, I moved to an outdoor events position to work on the activities booked throughout the RiverFront Park. My main areas of focus are on staffing of seasonal part-time staff and bartenders, working with booking food vendors and merchants for various concerts and festivals. I create event plans, layouts, and logistical documents for each event. I book outdoor park rentals including wedding ceremonies. I work as an on-site event manager during the outdoor events and rentals (May - October each year) and do physical labor for set-up and tear down of events. I work as a liason for bands, entertainers, promoters, and security at the venue. I have developed an internship program for any incoming interns with a Rec Admin background. This program ensures that they meet all necessary university requirements, their own personal goals, and that they fully understand the inner-workings of an event-based business. This is accomplished through a combination of hands-on learning, written assignments, and presentations. I am responsible for tracking payments for outdoor rentals and vendor fees, creating and updating sponsorship proposals, scheduling committee meetings, securing permits and licenses when appropriate (health, fire dept, etc). I have created numerous marketing tools, and presentations for the Park Board and City Council. This position is always growing and evolving with new challenges and responsibilities presenting themselves every day.