This is an opportunity for us to give back and help clean up
this wonderful location. Through our volunteer efforts, we can help
restore the natural beauty of the resources here and together, we
can make an enormous impact with just a little effort. For this
CITO, we will be picking up any trash that we find, and raking
leaves, picking up fallen twigs and branches, sweeping the walks,
collecting broken glass, etc.
This old preserved storefront of Rickett's Candy and Confections
was built in 1912, along with the building next to it, which was a
car dealership. It was cleaned out a few years back and converted
into a beautiful garden by a group of local children who belonged
to a community group known as Southern Perry County Youth Arts
& Media (SPiCYAM). There was also a group of Americorp VISTA
volunteers who worked to install the brick patio, steps, planting
beds and pathway. The vision of the group's supervisor was to plant
native species in the garden (which there are but like most
naturalized spaces may just read as "weedy" to the casual passer
by). The group had converted the disintegrating building into what
became known as Elaine's Garden, named in honor of a local citizen
who was active in helping youth and was serving as a VISTA
volunteer when she passed away suddenly. There was even a fountain
as well, constructed out of recycled materials but it never seemed
finished. This once lush garden has since fallen into disrepair and
needs our attention so that it can once again be a spot of beauty
in the community.
When:
Saturday, May 2, 2009 (05/02/2009). Please plan to arrive at
10:00 a.m. so we can coordinate and start our clean-up efforts. We
will probably be completed around 3:00 p.m. depending on the number
of attendees.
What to bring:
Please bring any/all of the following items with you to make our
work as successful as possible:
- work/latex gloves
- grabbers
- 5-gallon buckets (these work great for carrying litter)
- rakes
- gardening trowels (for planting)
- shovels
- tarps (to aid in collecting any raked leaves)
- push brooms
- sturdy cardboard boxes (to collect and hold any broken
glass)
- small native plant and/or flower
It is highly recommended that you wear a long-sleeve shirt and
jeans, and a decent pair of shoes. And as with any event held here
in Ohio, please dress for the weather, as appropriate. For those of
you that have lawn chairs, you may want to bring one with you, just
in case.
What else?
We are planning a pot-luck picnic around noon, so bring a dish
to share (electricity may or may not be readily available). We will
provide water, soft-drinks, and paper products for folks to use
during the event. We are also hoping that participants will bring a
small native plant and / or flower that we can plant in the garden
as well. There will also be new caches listed on/around the Buckeye
Trail for finding after the cleanup.
* * Please post what food item(s) you can bring in your 'will
attend' log. * *
Here's what folks are bringing so far:
- Hot dogs / buns
- Chicken Salad
- Macaroni Salad
- Potato Salad
- cold Pasta dish
- Bean Salad
- Veggie Tray
- Cheese Potato Casserole
- Apple Brown Bettys
- Pie
- Desert type thing
- (2) Chips
- Cookies
- Condiments
- Paper Products
- Silverware
- Soft Drinks
- Water