TreeKeepers ring in spring!

This morning 23 TreeKeepers came out in the spring snow to plant bareroot seedlings along the MKT Trail between bridges 2 and 3. The trees are understory trees that will help improve this riparian corridor. They had to get out their winter gear for this project! Many thanks for their efforts!

TreeKeepers remove invasive pears at Forum Nature Area

Twenty-nine TreeKeeper volunteers got up early on this cold February morning to remove hundreds of invasive pears at the Forum Nature Area, just south of the MKT Trail. Later this year, Parks & Recreation will plant this area with hundreds of new trees. Many thanks to these volunteers for their hard work and for sharing their Saturday morning with their city.

Pear trees have become an invasive plant in the Columbia area and Parks & Recreation has been working hard to increase awareness of this issue and to remove the pears from park property. Read more about the "Stop the Spread" campaign.

Volunteers make Halloween a Night to Remember!

Many thanks to the dozens of organizations and hundreds of volunteers who shared part of their Halloween night to host a game or activity at the Tiger Night of Fun. TNOF is organized by Columbia Parks & Recreation and held at the Hearnes Center Fieldhouse. The event is a Columbia tradition! Here are a few photos of volunteers before the doors opened and hundreds of kids and families entered the fieldhouse. Thanks, volunteers, for making this a safe and fun night for our community!

Hinkson Clean Sweep is a big success!

Many thanks to the hundreds of volunteers who came out this morning to participate in the 6th annual Hinkson Clean Sweep! The rainy weather earlier in the week reduced the number of available cleanup sites, but the bright, sunny day brought out the volunteers! Many organizations worked together to make the event a success. Read more at: http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Volunteer/HinksonCleanSweep2009.php.