Neighbor Spotlight: Dolly Provenza defined Oakmont through education, recreation board work for more than 30 years

Editor’s note: Neighbor Spotlight is a monthly feature that aims to let our readers learn more about the people in their communities who are working to make them a better place, who have interesting stories to tell or who the community feels deserve “15 minutes of fame.” If you would like to nominate someone as a Neighbor Spotlight, visit plumadvanceleader.com, select the “Post Story” button in the upper right corner, click the “New Article” button and complete the form to publish your nomination. Questions? Email Neighborhood News Network editor Katie Green at kgreen@triblive.com.

Dolly Provenza believes a town is defined by its recreational opportunities.

“A community is your parks and your outdoors,” said the longtime Oakmont resident. “Especially now in the last couple years. Other people have taken notice that they can’t do much else, but they can go outdoors and be safe. It makes a community.”

Provenza certainly has done her part in defining Oakmont. She recently stepped down from the borough’s parks and recreation board after three decades of service.

Her mentors on the rec board included the late councilmen Al Kennedy and Leonard Flowers.

“You learned the practical things about how the park functioned, even equipment and things,” Provenza said. “Len used to repair everything. He made benches that are still in use. Al didn’t repair things, but he was also the principal of the high school for many years.”

With hundreds of projects and events under her belt, Provenza said she wanted to make more time for her family and hopes a younger generation will step in.

“I’m not getting any younger,” said Provenza, 80. “It’s time for somebody else to take over. I will miss not being as involved, but I will stay involved if anybody asks to do something. The older you get, the less steam you have, although I think I still have steam.”

Ryan Ehrlich, a 2000 Riverview graduate, is one of the younger members on the recreation board. He has volunteered for nearly four years and feels inspired by Provenza.

“Dolly’s dedication to volunteering to serve the community is a great model for the entire town,” Ehrlich said. “I’ve really enjoyed working with Dolly on the rec board. She has a great perspective given her long time serving on the board and has made a significant impact during her tenure.

“I’m really happy to have her as a neighbor a couple houses down and always enjoy talking with her when I see her or her husband, Vince, outside. We will do our best (on the board), but she will surely be missed. Her service is something we should all strive for.”

Park projects

One of Provenza’s early projects involved writing a $6,000 grant in the early 1990s to replace Riverside Park playground equipment including steel slides, a metal merry-g0-round and large concrete tubes children would climb on

“The federal government said that these things were dangerous,” Provenza said. “They mandated (the changes) and we had no money,” Provenza said. “The borough had to match the grant, and they did. A lot of this equipment (at Riverside) is refurbished.”

The playground was renovated again in 2011. The borough received contributions from the Lions Club, Rotary, Riverview Athletic Association, Garden Club and Women’s Civic Association for Riverside during Provenza’s tenure.

She also assisted in a geese repellent program involving noise making devices and a golden retriever in the 1990s.

Large groups of foul would gather in the park and football fields causing a mess.

“You didn’t want them to stay and didn’t want to be harmful to them, asking people not to feed them,” Provenza said about the geese. “They used to come every winter, Canadian geese, and stay here. You couldn’t walk (in the park). Now they’re up in New Kensington.”

Her major fundraising projects include engraved bricks and memorial benches at Riverside Park. The bricks are in memory or honor of local families. They are placed in between the tennis courts and playground in the lower section of the park. The concrete benches are throughout the park.

The project was done in phases in 2010 and 2016. Funds raised went toward new equipment and other projects.

She was also on the board during the formation of the borough’s boccie league in 2011. The boccie court is in Memorial Park near the borough building along Fifth Street.

Provenza contributes articles about parks and recreation history to the borough’s monthly newsletter.

Educational work

Provenza graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1957 with a bachelors in special education and early childhood development. She earned a masters from Pitt in education in 1979 and state psychiatrist certification from Duquesne University in the 1980s.

Provenza worked for Riverview School District for 31 years starting as a substitute teacher at Verner Elementary in Verona. She would go on to teach first grade, become a district counselor, work as part of the gifted program and retire as special-education director in late 2007.

She said she enjoyed her career working at schools in both Oakmont and Verona.

“We’re a small district here, so you did what you need to do and what you were asked to do by the principals and superintendents,” Provenza said.

Provenza also assisted Pitt officials with the implementation of the adaptive learning environment model at Riverview, which helped craft individual curriculums.

She did similar work for districts in New York, Philadelphia and New Castle, Del.

Family background

Provenza grew up in Pittsburgh and graduated from Peabody High School in 1957.

She said she and her friends would often hang out in Highland Park.

She recalled seeing elephants in Schenley Park when the circus was in town.

She moved to Oakmont shortly after graduation and met her husband, a financial clerk at the borough’s post office.

Both are Historical Society members.

They have been married for 64 years and have three children, Cheryl Zentgraf, Mark and Matt Provenza, and six grandchildren.