About | Five Star Recreation

Core Beliefs at

"Recreation: The Benefits Are Endless" This tagline once used by the National Recreation & Parks Association is far more than a marketing tool Research shows that the benefits of recreation and green space within a community include increasing property values, attracting new businesses, stimulating the local economy, decreasing crime rates, reducing childhood obesity and employee absenteeism, lowers healthcare costs, protects the environment, and improves air and water quality - just to name a few!

Meanwhile, funding for parks and recreation is often threatened within our communities. While essential services such as police and fire are generally viewed as integral to life within our communities, we are often seen as an amenity rather than a necessity. It is our belief at Five Star Recreation that through providing an exceptional experience, we can position ourselves to be part of the fabric of our communities and secure our future.

Five Star Recreation is excited to offer a variety of services to assist you in reaching your goals through defining and executing your vision, mission and culture at the highest level:

Training for Full- and Part-Time Staff
- Vision & Mission Development
- Organizational Culture (defining & executing at all levels)
- Professional Development
- Frontline Development
- Board & Council Retreats

Facility and Operational Audits Designed to Embody Your Culture
- On-Site Facility Audits & Creation of Audit Documents (daily walk-throughs, etc.)

Meet Kirsten

Kirsten Allard Barnes, Trainer & Consultant

Kirsten was exposed to athletics and the arts from a young age, and she quickly understood what active and passive recreation could bring to a community. As a competitive swimmer, softball player, and basketball player, she also saw first-hand how athletics became an academic lifeline for some of her peers who might otherwise have become lost in the academic system. By becoming a recreation professional, she was excited to help share the power of recreation with her community and, now, with her peers.

As a graduate of the Missouri State University Recreation & Leisure Studies program, Kirsten's career in recreation has included a programs serving a variety of populations including youth sports leagues, summer camps, senior programming, ice arenas, golf courses, and special events. As Director of Management Services, Kirsten also oversaw lifeguard management at 24 aquatic facilities and waterparks before her entrepreneurial spirit led her into private recreation where she worked for a private fitness and wellness company serving over 17,000 members, supervising more than 220 employees, and overseeing a budget of almost $10 million in annual revenues. She currently works with a variety of public agencies to provide customized professional development and front line training and is the Assistant Director of the Association of Aquatic Professionals.

Kirsten is a Past President of the Missouri Parks & Recreation Association and was a member of the National Recreation and Park Association Annual Conference Program Committee and previously served on the Association of Aquatic Professionals Board of Directors.

Kirsten's conference speaking experience includes:

- Athletic Business Show (2022, 2023)
- Association of Aquatic Professionals (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023 - Keynote, 2024)
- California Aquatic Management School (2022)
- National Aquatic Conference & Management School (2005, 2007 – 2008)
- National Recreation and Parks Association Annual Congress (2015 – 2018, 2022)
- Northern New Englands Recreation & Park Conference (2017)
- TAAF/TRAPS Sports Management School (2008)
- Texas Public Pool Council Annual Conference (2008, 2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2022)
- Texas Recreation & Parks Society Aquatic Conference (2008)
- Texas Recreation & Parks Society Northern Region Conference (2016)
- World Waterpark Association Show (2021)
- Annual State Association Conferences: Arizona (2018), Arkansas (2016), California (2023-2024), Colorado (2017-2018), Connecticut (2007), Florida (2017-2019), Georgia (2016), Illinois (2018, 2024), Indiana (2022), Iowa (2019 - Keynote), Maryland (2018), Michigan (2018), Missouri (2007, 2013, 2015-17, 2022, 2024), Oregon (2016), Texas (2017-2019), Utah (2018 – Keynote, 2023), Vermont (2017), Wisconsin (2010)