An interfaith community service effort is slated for
Saturday, April 25, 2015
8 am to Noon
(please arrive by 7:45)
Hillcrest Park on Olivera Road
Concord, CA
Register at the JustServe.org project page in order to participate in this community service effort by clicking here
Where to meet
There are two parking lots which are accessible from Olivera Road so parking shouldn't be a problem. The staging area will be obvious. If you are facing the park from Olivera Road it will be in the left parking lot. Please arrive by 7:45 so we can begin the project briefing/instruction by 8:00. When you arrive please sign the roster so we know you were there. You will also need to sign a release of liability form for the city of Concord and another as your picture may turn up on the Helping Hands website.
Projects and tasks
There are a variety of tasks to be accomplished and there will be something worthwhile for people of all ages. Support staff from the city of Concord will be on-hand to assist us in the effort. The city will supply bags and some tools. We appreciate your willingness to serve. A great leader once said, "Unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives." The work we will do together on April 25th will make a positive difference in the city of Concord.
Trimming redwood trees and trash pickup
There's a need to trim new shoots/suckers (new and unwanted growth) off the trees in an established redwood grove in the park. Additionally, there is always a need to pick up items of trash around the park grounds.
Age and ability level needed
This is a great project for little kids and their parents as well as those folks who may not feel so nimble. Everyone can make a contribution.
Appropriate equipment and clothing for this project
Garden gloves, hand clippers and/or medium-duty pruners. Although there is lots of shade in this area, it may get warm as the day progresses so wear layers of clothing that can be removed to adjust to temperature changes.
Creek clean-up
Holbrook Channel is the creek which runs through the park and is part of a critically important element of the local watershed known as the Clayton Valley Water Drain. Because it is a natural drain a lot of unwanted debris is washed through it as water moves toward the ocean via the Carquinez Straits. Plastic bottles, aluminum cans, shopping carts and other assorted items find themselves a new and inappropriate home in the creek and need to be removed. The cub scouts will benefit from the recyclable items that will be collected.
Age and ability level needed
We need lots of able-bodied people to accomplish this task. There is a lot of work for individuals who are young and "young at heart". There are portions of the creek which are easily accessible and other areas which are more challenging to access (this is a much easier task compared to some of the creeks past Helping Hands projects have tackled in the past).
Appropriate equipment and clothing for this project
Hat, boots/galoshes (in case you have to step in wet or muddy areas), work gloves to protect hands from sharp items), steel rake for reaching into the creek for submerged items, and trimmers to remove unwanted overgrowth. Additionally, five to ten wheelbarrows will be needed. Please bring other helpful tools your common sense tells you will be appropriate and needed. Please be sure to mark your own tools so they don't get lost.
Paint a backstop at one of the two baseball diamonds at the park
This one is for folks who want to work on flat ground and know their way around a paint scraper, paint brush and roller. The city will provide the paint.
Age and ability level needed
All ages can be appropriate. Parents might find this isn't the best one for small children simply because your child may come home from the project looking like a Martian (the green paint we will be using is meant to go on the backstop and not the painter)
Appropriate equipment for this project
If you have a scraping tool, paint brush, paint roller and roller tray, please bring it. We'd rather have too many tools than not enough.
Cyclone fence repair
This element of the project will take some focused, skilled labor. There is a length of cyclone fence which is falling over due to erosion. The posts need to be reset.
Age and ability level needed
Volunteers who are willing to help with this and have the skill set to do so, please click here to visit the project's web page and contact the person listed as the point of contact. If he doesn't hear from anyone then he will find you and recruit you.
