If you were downtown in the summer of 1996, you may remember the original Downtown Ambassadors in their signature pith hats. The Ambassador Force launched in conjunction with the 1996 Olympic Games, when Atlanta was getting ready to welcome the world, with a simple idea: put a friendly, helpful presence on downtown's streets. Back then, the original team posed together on an escalator at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, and that picture became an well-known piece of Olympic-era downtown history.
Nearly 30 years later, the Ambassadors went back to the Hyatt to recreate it. Several dozen team members filled the escalator for the new shot, including some who have served downtown for more than 20 years. The occasion was the unveiling of new uniforms and branding for the Ambassador Force, and Downtown Atlanta Inc. says the photo celebrates how far the program has come while honoring the people who helped build it.
Three teams, three looks
What began as a way to welcome Olympic visitors is now a year-round operation made up of three specialized teams, and the new uniforms give each one a distinct identity so they are easier to recognize at a glance.
The first team is the one most visitors meet. These ambassadors welcome and assist visitors, give directions, and respond to a wide range of needs, from medical emergencies to everyday headaches like a dead car battery.
The Clean Team handles the work that most people only notice when it is missing: collecting litter, removing graffiti, pressure washing sidewalks and caring for street trees. They are also behind a lot of downtown's color, with seasonal plantings in curbside planters, hanging flower baskets, landscaped areas and the light pole banners that brighten the streets. As Downtown Atlanta Inc. puts it, much of this work goes unnoticed until it isn't done.
The outreach team builds relationships with neighbors who need a hand and connects them with case management, transportation, family reunification assistance, housing placements and other resources, working with community partners across the city.
Made for the field
Beyond the new colors, Downtown Atlanta Inc. says the uniforms were chosen with the work in mind. They are highly visible, add reflective striping, and use more comfortable, climate-appropriate materials to support the teams during long days outdoors. The bigger goal is simple recognition: the public should be able to tell who the ambassadors are and how they can help.
Same spirit, no pith hats
Plenty has changed since 1996. The pith hats have been retired, the teams have expanded and the work has grown. But the idea behind the program, people who show up every day to care for downtown and for everyone who lives, works and spends time here, is the same one that launched it ahead of the Centennial Games. In the year the city marks three decades since the Olympics, it is a nice reminder that some of downtown's friendliest Olympic legacies are not monuments at all, but the people on the sidewalk every morning.
Source: Downtown Atlanta Inc.
