Pal's Park: A Community Dog Park

A nonprofit organization

Since its ribbon cutting on May 10, 2021, there have been 4,200 total visits to Pal's Park by 679 unique visitors! 62% of all visitors live in the 17401 zip code, 64.7% of visitors live within 1 mile of the park, and 56.2% of visitors visited more than 3 times since the park opened.

🌧️ The Problem:

You love Pal’s Park. Your dog loves Pal’s Park. You know what doesn’t love Pal’s Park? Your car seats, your floors, your couch… basically anything that comes into contact with your mud-soaked pup.

After a good rain, parts of our park turn into a Slip ’n Slide of doom. While the dogs are thrilled, the humans—not so much.

🛠️ The Solution:

This year, we’re on a mission to Kick the Mud Out—literally.

Your donation during Give Local York will help us purchase mud control grids for the park’s worst muddy zones. These magical little grids stabilize the ground, improve drainage, and give your dog a solid (and clean!) place to romp.

They’re like spa tiles for your dog’s favorite potty spot. Fancy, right

💛 Why It Matters:

Clean dogs = happy homes.
Stable ground = fewer twisted ankles (for both pups and people).
Less mud = more fun for everyone.

🐶 Give Like a Good Pal:

Thanks to supporters like you during Give Local York, Pal's Park officially opened to the public on May 10, 2021! The park is the vision of Holden Feeser, a seventh grader at York Academy, who wanted to build a place to play with her Great Dane, Brutus.

🐕‍🦺 Pal's Story :

Pal’s Park is an off-leash dog recreation area on a 1-acre parcel of the York County Heritage Rail Trail. It was built by volunteers and funded by supporters like you! The park continues to be maintained by volunteers, alongside the City of York Public Works Department.

Pal's Park location was selected because it is the home to a bronze statue of Pal, a German Shepherd. The statue of Pal was created to honor York County native Arthur Glatfelter Jr., a savvy entrepreneur who started an insurance company and made many contributions to the community.

The story of Glatfelter and his dog started in 1942. During World War II, the then-teenage Glatfelter decided to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps. With no one to care for his dog, he anxiously brought the beloved pet with him to the military base. To his surprise, Pal was welcomed and, with training, put into service as a scout in a Marine war dog platoon. Eventually, the two were sent on different missions in the South Pacific and separated. But in 1946 they were reunited and honorably discharged. Glatfelter and Pal spent many more happy years together. Sixty years after their military service, the bronze sculpture of Glatfelter’s dog Pal was unveiled during a Veterans Day program.