Rotary Morrow Community Park, located off Noll Road in Poulsbo, held its grand opening April 19, offering a new play space for several housing developments in the area and honoring a local advocate of domestic violence victims, whom the park is named after.

99-year-old Ardis Morrow, whose three-year-old great-grand-nephew, Eli Creekmore, was beaten to death by his father in 1986 in Everett, led her to be a vocal supporter of domestic violence victims, which eventually resulted in the state legislature overhauling child welfare laws after the tragedy. The new park features a statue of Creekmore.

Over the years, Poulsbo Rotary Club and YWCA of Kitsap County collaborated to create two transitional homes for domestic violence survivors, Eli’s Place in Poulsbo and Tersha’s House in Silverdale. The two organizations also raised $3 million to construct Morrow Manor, a housing development for eight families affected by domestic violence, which opened in 2020.

The park, which sits on a 1.21-acre parcel, was donated to the city and includes a playground, picnic area and new trails.

Children on the swingset at the park.