COLONIAL HEIGHTS, Va. -- He helped change the face of Colonial Heights, Virginia. Now after more than three decades of service with the city's Parks and Recreation Department, Craig Skalak is retiring.
In his 35 years of work, Skalak coached hundreds of children.
"In most cases I was running a program, I was running our Blast Ball or our T-Ball, or Flag Football or Instruction League Basketball," Skalak said. "I think we’ve always prided ourselves, at least with athletic programs, in offering team athletics that I think bring a lot of life value too."
While in charge of the department, Skalak helped lead upgrades to Shepard Stadium, increased sports tourism, helped attract the Tri City Chili Peppers baseball team to town, and built Pickleball courts.
Skalak and his department also help run the city's Christmas Parade and annual Fort Clifton Festival each Mother's Day weekeknd.
"We typically draw 5,000 to 7,000 people over the weekend," he said.
Despite his retirement, Skalak said he still planned to lend a hand with the annual event.
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