May 2017 Park Angel of the Month: Sally Ann “Sam” MacLaughlin Olivier
Sally Ann “Sam” MacLaughlin Olivier remembers her first experience as a Park Angel was hot. She started volunteering with the Charleston Parks Conservancy in summer 2012 and her assignment was watering Cannon Park. Despite the hot task of watering that summer, she’s remained a faithful volunteer, coming on board as one of the Conservancy’s Lead Angels.
Sam retired from 18 years of teaching digital media arts at an independent school in Rochester, N.Y. She relocated to Charleston and quickly got involved with the Conservancy after a friend shared information about the Aqua Angels summer watering program.
Today, Sam is a faithful volunteer, never afraid to get her hands dirty or help with special projects. Sam was an instrumental member of the committee that wrote and designed the Conservancy’s first children’s book, “Here, There and Everywhere with Parker Bear.” Published in March in time for the annual Teddy Bear Picnic, Sam put her poetic skills to good use helping craft the rhymes and phrases in the book while also lending her design expertise to the project.
Sam encourages others to become Park Angels so they can get outdoors, learn new skills and meet new people. Plus, she says, the Conservancy is “simply a fabulous organization to work with. They treat volunteers like gold. After all, we are angels.”