Despite rainy conditions, six enthusiastic crews of City Years Volunteers, each led by an NHCC Corps Member, set out into the park to do some cleanup and restoration of park trails. These crews tackled a wide array of projects, including one crew that worked exclusively on pulling down hazardous trees with a grip-hoist. Other crews worked on building water bars and clearing trail corridors. Thanks to this joint-effort, a lot of much-needed work on some of Bear Brook’s most popular trails was completed in a single day. After the trail work was completed, the eager City Year Volunteers completed projects in and around the NHCC Main Lodge. Volunteers helped repair screens for summer cabins, removed brush from surrounding fields and even split and carried firewood.
Although hard work and service was the overwhelming theme of the day, there was plenty of great bonding and friendships developing between the two Corps. Many City Year members got a jump-start at getting to know their SCA counterparts by arriving on Thursday night for a sleepover at Bear Brook. It was a night of delicious snacks, fun games and great conversation. The sleepover served as a wonderful icebreaker for the next day. By the time the rain had finally cleared on Friday afternoon, all that was left to do for the two crews was to exchange contact information and hugs before saying goodbye. All in all, an amazing day of service turned into a terrific bonding experience between two of New Hampshire’s strongest volunteer programs.