Landscape the Park Week a Huge Success
Who would’ve believed that an empty field of dirt and grass could become a child’s paradise? That’s exactly what began taking place during Landscape the Park Week at New Song Mission! The official work was to begin on Monday, October 27th, but folks from Community Church of Columbus came out on Saturday to dig in and get started.
The vision for the park began with a detailed illustration put together by volunteer architect Dave Kreie and also Dan Gluesenkamp, owner of Designscape Horticultural Services and New Song board member. Dave is one of two architects who designed the homes on the New Song campus, and he and Dan enjoyed developing the vision for the park together for the New Song kids. “We feel privileged to work with New Song Mission,” said Dan. “It’s a great place to work with like-minded people who want to do important things for children. As a New Song Mission board member, I share in the great anticipation of seeing children live and play on the New Song campus.”
Volunteers got an early start and began mulching on Saturday.
As always, New Song’s Construction Manager Ron Eddins was on site every day to oversee the week-long landscaping and construction project that brought many people out to lend a hand in planting, mulching, grading, laying gravel for the park path and the basketball court, putting in pavers, and doing whatever was needed in general. In addition to landscaping the park, clean up weeding and mulching was done on the homes to keep them looking good too!
Brandon from Designscape did a great job with the skid steer work!
Each day began early and ended late with several teams showing up to pitch in and help. Some volunteers were able to come several days and others came when they could, and the effort of everyone pulling together accomplished so much! The New Song team of Shelley Benefiel, Kyla Ramirez, Lisa Schloss, and Bob Schloss came out to help on the landscaping too, as well as making sure everyone had everything they needed to keep the energy flowing.
Joie Curtis was one of the volunteers who came out to help for a couple of days. “I was initially interested because my daughter is involved in Outdoor Education, so I know the value for children in being outdoors, learning through play and activity. And being in this setting can bring an element that kids just don’t get in the city, a sort of wholeness.”
Joie had come out by herself thinking some exercise outside on a beautiful fall day would be a good thing. “I really wanted to help but couldn’t get a group together in time, so I went alone and ended up leaving with a lot of new friends!” There’s always a strong sense of purpose and camaraderie amongst the volunteer groups. It’s truly a rewarding experience for all.
Although so much was accomplished, there will still be much to do when spring arrives. But as we head into the cold winter months, we can look forward to seeing everything bloom again next spring. Then, the real results of the vision and work that’s been done so far at the park can be seen and enjoyed, and all who helped make it happen can witness the fruits of their labor. But most importantly, watching children run and play at this lovely park in the beautiful hills of Brown County will be the most rewarding thing of all.