Name change may be in store for historic Carver Park

ALBANY, Ga. – At Tuesday night’s Albany City Commission meeting, Albany resident, Kelvin Crawford went before Mayor Bo Dorough and commissioners to request the board’s consideration in changing Carver Park’s name.

Kelvin Crawford (left) at Commission Meeting Tuesday night

Kelvin Crawford tells me that he went before the board at last nights meeting because changing the name of this park to honor his childhood mentor and coach was weighing heavy on his heart.

Carver park is currently named after George Washington Carver but Crawford Suggests the name, Charles Driskell Sr. Park, would better represent the person who made a difference for the children of Albany that spent their childhood in the park. 

Charles Driskell Sr. (Source: Driskell family)

The late Charles Driskell Sr., lovingly referred to as ‘Doc,’ worked for the Albany Parks and Recreation Department for 35 years and he spent that time managing Carver Park.

Crawford says the park’s history was largely forged by Doc’s efforts. He says, “This was the place, this was the breaking ground, this was the place that history was made with Doc Driskell.”

Kelvin Crawford

Doc coached basketball at carver park, coached tennis, little league football and taught kids how to swim at Carver park.

During the meeting, a number of coaches came up to stand beside Crawford in support of Doc and changing the park’s name in his honor. Driskell’s daughter also spoke at the meeting and asked anyone who had been coached by Doc to stand.

Driskell says that Doc would even take money out of his own pocket to help kids that couldn’t afford equipment to play. He says, “Doc Driskell would get up sometime around 8 in the morning and not leave till twelve at night. If the kids didn’t have no money to buy clothes or anything of that nature, he would spend his own personal money. He would spend all his time for us.”

Source: Driskell Family

Along with his activities at Carver park, Doc was a teacher and coach at Monroe High School, Lee County Training School and Lee County High School. Doc’s legacy lives on as the coaches he coached continue to coach the next generation.

But Crawford says Doc deserves more recognition. He says by renaming Carver Park, the city will finally give a little love back to the man that gave everything.

“I think Doc Driskell was the man that showed love and we should, as a city of Albany, we should show Doc Driskell the love.”

Mayor Dorough said the public would be alerted about the possible park name change in April.