A Moment in the Recreation of Ada

A Moment in the Recreation of Ada

Brandon Kelley

ADA, OKLA. – He fiddled with a newly acquired piece of jewelry on his left hand ring finger as he responded to my questions. Daron Ellis sat in a recliner in his living room with tall ceilings, taking no extra time to answer the question. More than anything noticeable, Ellis, employee of the City of Ada’s Recreation Department, seemed relaxed and content as he described his job, working for the city.

It took no time to realize that this man stays extremely busy. Ellis is in charge of many of the Ada based recreation activities. Ellis is in charge of the summer softball league and tournaments as well as flag football and volleyball. That alone does not make a dint in his list of obligations. Ellis is also in charge of the swimming pools in Ada, including Wintersmith Park pool.

“We rent out Wintersmith swimming pool for pool parties,” Ellis said. “One to 50 people are charged $75 and 50 to 100 people are charged $100.” Ellis said that his job continues to expand, and he is now in charge of the new Splash parks located in Ada.

Ellis is currently in his last semester at East Central University, majoring in Kinesiology Recreation with a minor in Sociology. When hearing about his last job, it was easy to make the connection with recreation.

“Since I was 18, I took over my dad’s sprinkler system business, Ada Sprinkler Systems. That was until I got this recreation job for the city of Ada,” Ellis said. Although sprinkler systems are not his main source of income, Ellis said that he still installs sprinklers on the side. “I actually have one coming up at the office buildings behind Sante Fe Restaurant,” Ellis added.

When asked more personal question, Ellis answered with a sense of dignity and compassion.

“I just got married to my beautiful and loving wife, Michael Elizabeth Ellis, in Durango, Colorado. We just bought a house together on Eighth St. We had to do a lot of work on the house, but it is working out nice now. Still a lot of work to be done though,” Ellis said with a bright smile on him and his wife’s face as he said it. The Ellis’ were more than happy to announce that they are expecting a baby boy that is due on May 26. “We’re gonna name him Paix Michael Ellis.”

“My wife and I have our own dirt bikes that we love to ride. Michael’s bike is a 100, four-stroke and mine is a 250, four-stroke. We have some pretty good times on those things,” Ellis said while pulling at his beard.

Whether its working for the city of Ada, riding dirt bikes with his wife or chasing his Capuchin monkey around the house, Daron Ellis seems like a man that has his life pretty well mapped-out.