Teaming Up to Green Little Green Acres Park
On Thursday, November 1st, SCA, Timberland, Journeys, and many local partners came together to transform an abandoned community garden into a thriving green space for the LA community. Over 80 participants tallied more than 500 service hours, uniting to renew 10,018 square feet of garden space. These Earthkeepers came out in force to plant 1,800 seeds and plants, install 24 structures, and create a 400 square foot pollinator garden. Check out the visual transformation by clicking here!
From across the country, SCA Alumni Leaders joined Timberland and Journeys to lead project groups including tool shed construction and garden bed revitalization. With tools in hand and Timbs on their feet, participants kicked off the day by renewing the barren garden bed soil and demolishing a rotting tool shed. These Earthkeepers jumped in with a readiness to learn on their feet (or boots) from their skilled SCA Alumni Leaders and staff. Volunteers worked tirelessly heaving and turning soil, transplanting flowers, and preparing the raised beds, fencing, and compost bin structures to create the foundation of this transformed garden.
Lunch time arrived quickly to the hard-working Earthkeepers, who welcomed made-to-order tofu tacos and fried chicken along with delicious sides. After a reenergizer with SCA staff and leaders, the participants dug back in at Little Green Acres. Everyone worked in flurry to complete their projects. Timberland and Journeys volunteers stepped in to lend a hand wherever needed completing 4 benches, tool shed construction, and 12 raised beds, just to mention a few. Participants also teamed up to plant more than 80 fall vegetables.
In the finishing touches, volunteers strung 2 solar-powered light structures, seeded raised beds, mulched heavy traffic areas including an outdoor educational space, and filled the compost bin with the natural debris pulled out during the day. Michael Wilcox, an SCA Leader guiding the tool shed construction team, couldn’t help but to express his pride in the team: ” I still can not believe the amount of work we were able to accomplish in such a short period. The comradery between the volunteers was amazing.”
In an impressive feat, this green team created a community garden with a new tool shed, compost bin, outdoor educational space, pollinator garden, 6 in-ground beds, and 12 raised beds. To further their greening impact, the tool shed and compost bin contained recycled materials, as many existing plants as possible were either transplanted or harvested as produce, and the vegetables and seeds planted were primarily heirloom or non-GMO.
Timberland gathered over 80 lively faces one last time in a farewell thank you for transforming over 10,000 square feet of abandoned garden into a flourishing urban green space. This community area will be used for educational and therapeutic programming as well as vegetable production that will help support those in need. For the Timberland and Journeys family, urban greening is all in a good day’s work.
Special thanks to City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks and Fathers and Mothers Who Care for their partnership and to Timberland and Journeys for supporting SCA.
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