Volunteer Columbia

2011-01-05T18:19:00.000-06:00

2011-01-05T18:14:00.001-06:00

2011-01-05T18:04:00.003-06:00

TreeKeepers ring in spring!

2010-03-20T10:39:00.003-05:00

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

2010-02-13T10:10:00.005-06:00

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!

2009-11-02T08:08:00.006-06:00

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!

2009-10-17T10:49:00.007-05:00

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.

Volunteers plant the 763 roundabout

2009-10-05T14:09:00.009-05:00

If you travel through the north end of Columbia, take a minute to check out the roundabout located at 763/VV/Prathersville Road. A group of 24 volunteers shared Saturday morning to plant the bed with a variety of trees, shrubs and perennials. This bed will be adopted by the Cosmo Clubs of Columbia and many of their members came out to plant, along with a group of MU student athletes and a few other dedicated volunteers!

This was the larges Adopt A Spot project we have under taken and think it will be enjoyed by the thousands of people who travel through this intersection every day!

MU Greek Service Day - Sept. 26

2009-09-29T08:38:00.007-05:00

Saturday, September 26 was the MU Greek Service Day, and the City of Columbia benefited from the time and hard work of these MU students! A group of nearly 20 helped in Chapel Hill Road by adding landscaping to three beds located just west of Scott Boulevard while another 200+ worked with Public Works to pick up litter in the Hinkson Creek. Thanks, MU students, for a great day! You made a difference!

Volunteers lend a hand at the Heritage Festival

2009-09-21T08:36:00.004-05:00

Did you enjoy the 32nd annual Heritage Festival? If you did, you were one of thousands of residents and visitors who enjoyed the beautiful fall weather at this event held Sept. 19 & 20 at Nifong Park. Assisting Parks & Rec staff with this event was more than 75 volunteers who helped primarily in the children's activity area. Above are a few photos of the volunteers helping kids and their families and having fun! Thanks, volunteers - you helped make the Heritage Festival a success!

Volunteers make the Creative Kids event a success!

2009-09-17T07:50:00.004-05:00

Many thanks to the more than 20 volunteers who helped with games and activities for kids at the "Creative Kids" Family Fun Fest on Sept. 16 at Flat Branch Park. Volunteers helped with face painting, with Box City, with the magnetic poetry wall, with the Public Works Recyclebration Area as well as many other craft activities for kids and their families. Thanks, volunteers, for making memories for hundreds of kids and their families!

Jr. Leadership Columbia cleans up Flat Branch

2009-09-14T20:13:00.004-05:00

Twenty-five local high school students in Jr. Leadership Columbia picked up trash in Flat Branch Creek on Monday night, Sept. 14 as part of their session on volunteering. The group learned about all the great reasons and ways to volunteer, including comments from Leigh Britt, City Volunteer Coordinator, and Michael Heimos, City Stormwater Outreach Coordinator. In just over 30 minutes, this group picked up several bags of trash from the stream along Flat Branch Park. Thanks, Jr. Leadership Columbia!

TreeKeepers assist in the city nursery

2009-09-14T20:08:00.003-05:00

TreeKeeper volunteers gathered at the Parks & Rec tree nursery near Cosmo Park on Saturday morning, Sept. 12 to help deer proof the trees. They installed wire fencing around several trees, applied Irish Spring soap and deer repellent. They also removed honeysuckle from a large area near the park. Thanks, TreeKeepers, for your hard work!!

Volunteering never goes on vacation!

2009-08-25T09:39:00.008-05:00

Volunteers have been busy in the month of August helping with events with Columbia Parks and Recreation. Volunteers shared their time with the Flat Branch Movie Night, the Family Fun Fest and with Punt, Pass & Kick. Many thanks to the Columbia Rotary Club who have helped now for three consecutive years with the PPK event!

Landscaping at Broadway/Old 63

2009-08-07T15:39:00.001-05:00

Hundreds of residents drive through the intersection of Broadway and Old 63 every day. If you are one of them you have seen some changes this year! The folks at Boone Hospital have landscaped the bed at the northwest corner and soon you'll see landscaping installed at the southeast corner by Missouri Cancer Associates.

Today we had a group of young men from the Boone County Juvenile office help weed the southeast bed in preparation for the landscaping.... we're making progress!

The City of Columbia has nearly 95 Adopt A Spots all over town maintained by volunteers. We appreciate their hard work to make our city look good!!

TreeKeepers work on the Bear Creek Trail at Garth

2009-07-27T10:53:00.008-05:00

If you use the Bear Creek Trail, and travel through the Garth Avenue Trailhead, it is likely you saw some changes after Saturday morning! A dozen TreeKeeper volunteers, along with Chad and Dave with Columbia Parks & Rec., were up bright and early Saturday morning to trim the trees around the parking lot and also cut back tree growth along the trail.

Thanks to Herman, Bill, Richard, Becky, Clare, Dave, Blair, Angela, Vanessa, Amber, Mary Jo, Jacob and Amy for sharing their time!

Mary Jo and Richard work on trimming a tree near the parking lot entrance.

Amber and Angela decide on the next step trimming a tree along the Bear Creek Trail.

Clare and Bill work on trimming a tree back in the parking lot.

Volunteers go Around the World

2009-07-16T08:38:00.006-05:00

Last night Columbia Parks & Recreation held the monthly Family Fun Fest at Flat Branch Park. This month's them was Around the World. Many thanks to the more than 15 volunteers who led games or helped with face painting. It was a beautiful night and a big turnout! The volunteers who helped had fun and created a great experience for kids and their families.

Stay tuned... there are three more Family Fun Fests this year: August 19, September 16 and October 21. Let us know if you can help - volunteer@GoColumbiaMo.com or 874-7499.

Youth In Action volunteers have fun with a ball-passing game.

Lindsay leads a group of kids in Achi, an African version of tic-tac-toe.

Kristin and Jon lead a Mexican bean throwing game.

Notes on volunteering - odds and ends!

2009-07-08T10:26:00.003-05:00

The posts the last few weeks have been sparse, so I thought I would share a few items today!

I had the great pleasure of attending the National Conference on Volunteering & Service in San Francisco on June 21-24. The highlight was the opening session that featured First Lady Michelle Obama, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver and entertainers Jon Bon Jovi and Matthew McConaughey. Quite a cast! It is wonderful that the President and First Lady have such an interest in supporting service... and people are taking note! California is doing some progressive things related to volunteering, including a cabinet post dedicated to service.

I so appreciate the support these officials and celebrities give to service, but I don't want to lose sight of all the hundreds of people who have served on a regular basis for years! Sometimes these new campaigns make it sound like volunteering is a new thing when really it's been part of our community for years.

I also discovered how special Columbia is to have an office dedicated to volunteering within our local government. Of the 5,000 who attended the conference, fewer than 30 worked to manage volunteers within local government. Thanks to our city leaders for making this investment.

On the local front:

Many thanks to the 18 TreeKeepers and 12 disc golf club members who worked at Oakland Park on Saturday, June 27 remulching the course and pruning.
Last November, a large group of volunteers worked on a sidewalk assessment project in cooperation with GetAbout Columbia. This week I had a note from the project manager, Kristin Re. While she sent the note to me, the thanks goes to the volunteers who shared their time:
I wanted to send a thank you for helping to garner volunteers to quantify sidewalk accessibility. Without your help and the community's, I would not have been able to collect the data. With the data I was able to present the current conditions to city council and they agreed to repair the measured 18 square blocks. This is a wonderful example of how the community can unite to make the environment usable for every citizen regardless of abilities.

Have a great day --

Leigh Britt

Stream Extravaganza!

2009-06-18T08:14:00.004-05:00

Last night was the fifth annual Stream Extravaganza, held this year as part of the Family Fun Fests at Flat Branch Park. The purpose of the event is raise awareness about protecting our water and educating the public on watersheds and local environmental activities.

Although the incoming storm cut the event short, there were still dozens of people who attended. Thanks to the dozen volunteers who helped put on the event in addition to the many local organizations who participated to talk about their efforts to protect the environment.

Jennifer Mantler looks on after getting two young festival attendees started casting with the fishing poles.

Youth In Action volunteer Kit Webster helps a young man find his watershed on the map.

CARP volunteers work at Auburn Hills Park

2009-06-01T09:22:00.004-05:00

Saturday morning, May 30, a group of CARP volunteers converged at Auburn Hills Park in north Columbia to plant the shoreline of the pond. Debra Hardin from the Office of Volunteer Services was on hand and snapped these shots. CARP volunteers work in support of horticulture staff with Columbia Parks & Recreation. Many thanks to these volunteers for sharing their time, their muscles and their passion for the environment!

Fairview 4-H Members pick up trash at Flat Branch

2009-06-01T09:18:00.003-05:00

Many thanks to the Fairview 4-H club for picking up litter in Flat Branch creek on May 14. Trash pick up in a local stream has been an annual activity for the club. You can see their pile of filled trash bags... they picked up 15 bags of trash! We appreciate this group of kids and parents helping to make Columbia a better city.

Volunteer Reception May 21

2009-05-26T09:19:00.004-05:00

Thursday, May 21 was the city's annual volunteer appreciation reception. More than 180 volunteers and staff gathered at the Elk's Lodge east of Columbia for a light meal, entertainment by Bill Thompson and Sherri Homan and a THANK YOU for all their hard work!
In the food line... always a popular place!

Ed Kaiser receives the plaque as the first Lang Award winner from Mayor Pro Tem Laura Nauser.

Farah and Barb enjoy the event. They are both Adopt A Spot Beautification volunteers!

First Family Fun Fest

2009-05-21T10:27:00.009-05:00

Last night was the first Family Fun Fest for the 2009 season. It was a lovely evening so hundreds of kids and parents were at Flat Branch Park having a fun evening enjoying the entertainment and activities.

Thanks to the many volunteers who helped with face painting and with the activities! You can see volunteering is fun, too!

Kids Bicycle Safety Challenge

2009-05-16T10:55:00.007-05:00

Many thanks to all the volunteers who shared their time this morning to make the annual Kids Bicycle Safety Challenge a success! The event was held at Shelter Insurance with many groups making it happen: the Downtown Optimist Club, students from Jefferson Jr. High, the Columbia Parks & Recreation, Police & Fire Departments, the Columbia Bike Club, Walt's Bike Shop, community volunteers and Shelter employees. This is a popular annual event to keep our kids safe.

Boy Scouts work on the Blind Boone Home

2009-05-16T10:49:00.003-05:00

This morning a group of Boy Scouts led by Cyrus Tague worked on demolishing the interior of the Blind Boone Home. Cyrus, a member of Troop 706, is working on the home for his Eagle Scout Project. I was impressed with how he welcomed me, provided me with safety equipment and gave me a quick tour of what was going on. This work is one step toward the restoration of the home. Thanks, Cyrus, and others who helped you!!

Adopt A Spots in bloom!

2009-05-11T16:56:00.003-05:00

I don't get to the northeast edge of town often, but I was that direction last week and stopped to take a closer look at the Kraft Foods Adopt-A-Spot located at Paris Road/Route B and Waco Road. Their bed had just been mulched and some flowers were beginning to bloom... they have it in good shape ready for the coming growing season.

I often say the Adopters have one of THE toughest volunteer jobs in our town. They have a hard job to weed and water their beds and there's no cheating allowed -- everyone can see what gets done (or doesn't get done!) and usually by tens of thousands of people every day.

Kudos to our Adopters for all their hard work! I hope to share other pictures with you throughout the growing season.
Leigh Britt

Mayor's Challenge - Bike, Walk & Wheel Week

2009-05-11T16:51:00.004-05:00

Ok, so Breakfast Station Day for the Mayor's Challenge: Bike, Walk & Wheel Week (last Friday, May 8) was another rainy day! Despite the rain, there were still nearly 1,000 people who stopped by a breakfast station while biking, walking or wheeling to work! Here are a few photos from the station at the Garth access to the Bear Creek Trail sponsored by the Columbia Kiwanis Club. Many thanks to all the volunteers who got up extra early to make this a special day! We'll keep our fingers crossed for the weather in 2010!

More Cleanup Columbia Photos

2009-05-05T07:59:00.008-05:00

Cleanup Columbia was held on April 25 with about 1,700 volunteers participating. I thought it would be great to share a few more photos since this is the city's largest single-day volunteer event! Many thanks to volunteer photographer Willie Jones for sharing his time and skills to catch the cleanup volunteers in action. You'll see Willie above in red taking photos! Isn't it cool how happy people are picking up trash? Gotta love it!!

Major League Baseball: Pitch, Hit & Run

2009-05-04T09:07:00.005-05:00

Saturday, May 2 was the Pitch, Hit & Run event at Oakland Park. This year there was a girl's softball division along with the boy's baseball contest. Volunteers helped in measuring the hits, counting the throws and timing the running element. Many thanks to the Hallsville High School Spanish Club and four other volunteers who shared their morning to make memories for some Columbia kids!!

Mayor's Challenge Sponsor/Volunteer Breakfast - May 1

2009-05-04T08:46:00.004-05:00

On Friday morning, more than 50 volunteers gathered at Shakepeare's Pizza on 9th Street for the annual Volunteer/Sponsor Breakfast prior to the Mayor's Challenge: Bike, Walk & Wheel Week. Volunteers were treated to made-to-order omelets created under the leadership of the Egg Lady, Jo Manhart.

A special treat was a visit by MU Basketball Coach Mike Anderson; he and his wife are honorary co-chairs for the event. Just goes to show you never know what great things you might be in for when you volunteer!!

Volunteers helped with Saturday's kickoff event at Flat Branch Park and will be helping at breakfast stations throughout Columbia on Friday.

Thanks, Police Volunteers!

2009-05-01T09:05:00.002-05:00

Last night I had the pleasure of attending the Columbia Police Department's annual volunteer reception. Our police department has a wonderful volunteer program made up of high school students who serve as cadets, the Neighborhood Watch board, reserve officers who have full training and the same equipment and authority as paid officers and the large cadre of Columbia Police Volunteers - 54 volunteers who assist the department in many ways! The police department has a well organized program where volunteers receive significant training and help with important tasks.

Last night, six volunteers were recognized for their dedication with a President's Volunteer Service Award. Receiving the Bronze Award were Mike Martinez and Ernie Lee. Recognized with the Silver Award were Chuck Lundquist, Gary Poelling, Richard Poelling and Jack Wohlman.

Congratulations and thanks police volunteers!

Cleanup Columbia 2009 was a big success!

2009-04-25T15:24:00.002-05:00

Today was the 13th annual Cleanup Columbia!! With about 2,200 volunteers pre-registered and beautiful weather, we were anticipating a big day. The preliminary reports from 62 groups who have reported help us estimate that:

1,695 volunteers participated
Volunteers picked up 2233 bags of trash
Participants logged on average 1.84 hours
Total volunteer hours shared is 3,131

What a fantastic turnout! Thanks to the hundreds of volunteers who shared their Saturday to give their a community a helping hand. We will start making plans next week for Cleanup Columbia 2010... we'll keep you posted!

Congratulations to our Heroes!

2009-04-24T11:21:00.001-05:00

Yesterday afternoon was the annual HERO Award presentation sponsored by the Voluntary Action Center and the Columbia Daily Tribune. This is a special recognition each year during National Volunteer Week to recognize volunteers from all over the community as nominated by local nonprofits and agencies.

This year the Office of Volunteer Services nominated Tom Masters, a long-time Park Patrol volunteer, in the individual category, Andrea Steinbach in the youth category and the Aktion Club in the group category.

The Aktion Club won in the group category and we are so proud of them! They have an Adopt-A-Spot Beautification Bed and participate in Cleanup Columbia and do many other things to support the community. They are preparing to provide a meal at the Ronald McDonald House in May.

Pictured above are Margaret Stapley, Aktion Club president, with Gary Taylor from Woodhaven and Andrea Steinbach.

We think all our volunteers are heroes! This program gave us a chance to recognize a few of you for outstanding service.

Cleanup Columbia on-campus supply pickup

2009-04-22T07:57:00.003-05:00

Cleanup Columbia, the city-wide trash pick up event, is coming up this Saturday, April 25. With nearly 200 registered groups (families, businesses, scout troops, service clubs and individuals) participating, the logistics for the event can be daunting! Each group has their own assigned location and receives bags, gloves, and vests for their pick up.

This year, we tried something new - an on-campus supply pick up and sign up at MU on Tuesday, April 21. Thanks to a group of Agricultural Education students, Sustain Mizzou and the MSA Campus Community Relations Committee, we made it happen! Eight groups picked up supplies in front of the new bookstore on Rollins Street and three new groups signed up to help.

Many thanks to Kabel Oaks and his classmates for their special help for this new attempt to get more MU students involved with Cleanup Columbia.

Hershey's Track & Field Meet

2009-04-18T13:12:00.010-05:00

This morning was the Hershey's Track & Field meet, a children's event organized by Parks & Recreation that was held at Rock Bridge High School. Nearly 30 volunteers spent the morning in the cold, rainy weather to assist in making the event a success. Volunteers served as timers, measurers, orderers, recorders and runners. Thank you, volunteers, for making the Hershey's meet a success!

Volunteers make the Egg Hunt Eggstravaganza a huge success!

2009-04-11T14:10:00.006-05:00

Today there were literally hundreds of children and their families at Douglass Park to take in the Parks & Recreation Department's Egg Hunt Eggstravaganza. It was a fantastic event, not just because of the beautiful weather, but also due to the help of nearly 30 volunteers to shared a few hours of their time. Volunteers helped with the egg hunts, staffed games and activities and painted faces. Because of their help, they made Easter weekend a fun and special time for hundreds of Columbia children. Thanks, volunteers!

Caring for Columbia volunteers lend a hand with Adopt-A-Spots

2009-04-06T10:31:00.005-05:00

On Saturday, April 4 more than 15 MU students with Caring for Columbia lent a hand to help re-mulch six Adopt-A-Spot Beautification beds located in Blue Ridge Road and Brown Station Road. Their labor was a huge help in getting these beds off to a beautiful start this spring. Many thanks to volunteers to care for 84 beds year-round in our city.

TreeKeepers give away 700 trees on April 4

2009-04-06T10:21:00.006-05:00

TreeKeepers celebrated Missouri Arbor Day with their annual tree give away giving away 700 trees Saturday morning at the ARC. The trees were given away to more than 300 area residents in less than 90 minutes!

Friday afternoon, a group of 17 volunteers gathered at the Parks Management Center to wrap and label the trees to prepare for the give away.

Thanks, TreeKeepers, for keeping Columbia green!

Enjoy the Tulips from Plant the Promise

2009-04-01T11:02:00.005-05:00

Aren't they beautiful? Tulips are one of the joys of spring, and thanks to the efforts of about 350 local youth, we have 1,300 more to admire this year! Last fall, 21 youth groups from throughout the community planted red tulips as part of "Plant the Promise" - a commitment of your young people to stay drug and alcohol-free. You may see the tulips throughout the community - along streets, near public housing, in the yards of clients of Boone County Council on Aging or here near the Wardrobe.

The Plant the Promise program was coordinated by the city's Office of Volunteer Services and the Youth Community Coalition. We plan to work with youth to install another batch this fall.

TreeKeepers plant 600 trees on a cold spring day!

2009-03-28T10:44:00.006-05:00

What fantastic volunteers we have! Twenty-five TreeKeepers volunteers showed up at Kiwanis Park this morning to plant 600 bare root trees. With the threat of rain and a spring snow shower, they still came out in the cool morning temperatures to help in the park. Fortunately, they completed their work by the time it began to rain at 10 a.m. In addition to the TreeKeepers volunteers, another 10 volunteers from other community organizations joined the effort, too. Thanks, volunteers! In the years to come, we'll all benefit from your work as the trees grow and mature.

TreeKeepers and others spruce up Stephens on March 14

2009-03-17T08:12:00.005-05:00

More than 40 TreeKeepers, community volunteers, and young adults with the CJCLDS Church gathered at Stephens Lake Park last Saturday to do some "spring cleaning" including mulching and pruning trees and picking up trash. Volunteers help our community in hands-on ways every day! So, if you're in Stephens enjoying a beautiful spring day and see the freshly mulch trees and a litter-free park, thank a volunteer!

Downtown Optimist Club helps with Homes for Computers

2009-03-01T19:55:00.004-06:00

Saturday was the sixth year for the Homes for Computers give away where old city computers are given away to low-income families who have children in school. The program has been a successful partnership between the city who provides the computers, Voluntary Action Center who identifies the families, and the Downtown Optimist Club that provides the labor to clean the computers, their facility for the give away and helps load them in the recipient's cars.

Many thanks to the Downtown Optimist Club for their help with this program. Under the leadership of Rick McKernan, their members have spend dozens of hours each spring to prepare the computers for their new homes. This year, Rick arranged for a presentation from the Boone Co. Sheriff's Department on internet safety, a great addition to help these families understand the risks of going online.

This is just one example of the many wonderful things the Downtown Optimists do for our communuty. Thanks for helping bring computers to 35 homes in our community!

Volunteers help with "The Plunge"

2009-02-16T11:51:00.002-06:00

My guess is that you may have heard about Saturday's "Polar Bear Plunge," a fundraiser for Special Olympics held at Stephens Lake Park on February 14. This was the second year for this event in Columbia and it is highly popular. You can read more about it in the Missourian.

There were 285 participants in this year's Plunge. In addition to the many others who came to watch, this made for a big crowd at the park!

Fortunately, Park Ranger Rosanna Arens wasn't the only one trying to direct the crowd. If you've been to Stephens Lake Park, you may know that parking is sometimes challenging with lots scattered about and some not big enough for the number of visitors.

On Saturday, Rosanna had the help of several Park Patrol volunteers: Tom Masters, Rick Eyler, Mark Lee, Mary Newby and Jean Haislip. They assisted in directing traffic and answer questions.

The main role of Park Patrol volunteers is to serve as ambassadors in our trail and parks. They are asked to keep a look out for suspicious activity and maintenance issues and report what they see to staff. They are also asked to have a cell phone with them in case they need to call for emergency services.

Many thanks to our Park Patrol volunteers for their help on Saturday and for the work they do year round to support our parks!

Many hands at work at Kiwanis Park on Feb. 7

2009-02-09T20:53:00.002-06:00

Saturday was a beautiful day - 70 degrees which is unusual for early February. Forty-five TreeKeepers, Boy Scouts and neighbors came out to Kiwanis Park on Saturday to take advantage of the beautiful day and remove honeysuckle that was taking over the woods.

This was one of our largest TreeKeepers projects - at least with the number of volunteers - in the history of TreeKeepers. Many of those who just completed their coursework as well several seasoned volunteers came out. Steve Johnson, a resident of the nearby College Park neighborhood, stopped by to share his appreciation to the group and lend a hand, too.

Thanks, volunteers, for joining forces to make a huge difference at Kiwanis Park!

See Brenda and Cheryl on CATV

2009-02-04T08:14:00.004-06:00

Each month, various community groups come together to tape "Making A Difference," a program featuring volunteer opportunities on CAT3 TV. Last night was our monthly taping and one segment was an interview with two of our CARP volunteers, Cheryl Hardy and Brenda Peculis.

Cheryl and Brenda were in the first CARP class in 2007 and are also TreeKeepers and involved with many other volunteer efforts throughout the community.

I really enjoyed listening to their interview with our host, Dhomonique Ricks. They shared so much enthusiasm and satisfaction from participating in the projects held along streams and lakes in our city parks.

Here's how I see these projects: we ask volunteers to come early on a Saturday morning on days that are sometimes hot and sometimes cold. We ask them to do really hard work digging, weeding, lifting heavy plant material many times working in water. Doesn't always sound so fun, although the results are long-lasting and important to the community.

After hearing Cheryl and Brenda I got a different perspective. These projects are a lot of fun because they are much different than what they and other volunteers do in their daily jobs. They really do enjoy working in the water (in all temperatures!) and getting to interact with other people who are of like-mind. They don't see this as work at all but as a great opportunity to help the community and gain a great feeling of pride.

Thanks, Brenda and Cheryl, for sharing your story! Their episode will begin airing in the next week. You can see the schedule online.

The Obama Effect

2009-01-24T19:59:00.004-06:00

Our TreeKeepers class started this week and we had a wonderful response from the community. The city has offered this program for more than 10 years and while there was a strong response the first few years, the classes have been 20-25 for the last few years. Year after year there were citizens who wanted to learn about trees and share their time.

This year we had such a pleasant surprise - 39 volunteers are in the class - about a 50% increase from last year! So, why such great participation? Was it simply luck, was it our new class schedule or did we promote it better?

Today members of the class introduced themselves and several mentioned President Obama, his emphasis on service and the volunteer service he promoted on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day earlier this week as their reason for being there.

Often these national days of service or trends are difficult to see play out locally. Our new president may just be providing the encouragement to get more people active. I'm pleased to see it!! Thanks to everyone who is sharing their time to serve!

Everybody can be great because everybody can serve

2009-01-19T09:15:00.002-06:00

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I'm particularly drawn to his quote, "Everybody can be great because everybody can serve." Volunteerism is a great equalizer in our country. Each and every person, regardless of their abilities, race or economic status can share their time to help others, and just about all of us at some time need the help of someone else.

One of the things that I have most enjoyed about working in Volunteer Services is meeting a wide variety of people who want to share their time to make Columbia a better place. There is no way to pigeon-hole our volunteers - they come from every walk of life.

I am always pleased to see the young people who volunteer in the summer through Youth In Action - an especially diverse group. They see volunteering is a stepping stone to a better future. Volunteering will help them gain experience for future employment and will look good to future colleges and scholarship committees where they want to be considered. The youth and their families know they can be great through service.

I think we spend time thinking too much about our differences when we should focus on what we have in common. Service is a common denominator among us all. This is a great day to reflect on the volunteerism each of us will share in 2009.

TreeKeepers starts January 22

2009-01-16T09:44:00.002-06:00

One of the city's long-time volunteer programs starts up again next week. The first TreeKeepers class will be held Thursday night from 6-9 p.m. at the ARC, 1701 West Ash and the other two sessions will be Saturday morning and the following Tuesday evening.

Through TreeKeepers, volunteers learn about many aspects of tree management and are then asked to share 36 hours of service on parks tree projects held on Saturday mornings.

The great thing about this program is that not only to participants learn about trees, but they make an important and lasting impact on our community. How wonderful it is for our volunteers to plant and prune trees in parks that will be enjoyed by hundreds of others for generations to come!

There is still room for additional participants and we invite you to participate!

Thanks, First Night volunteers!

2009-01-02T09:01:00.005-06:00

I had a lovely time Wednesday night at First Night visiting with many wonderful folks who volunteered to make the event a success. The event is only possible because of the more than 100 people who share their time to put it on!

I won't be able to mention everyone I visited with along the way, so here are a few highlights:

The afternoon started with Diane, John and Karen coming to the office to pick up the hospitality food and supplies. They spent a few hours making deliveries and getting out the food for the volunteers and entertainers to enjoy. They have a wonderful can-do attitude and were happy to make deliveries to seven different buildings.
That night, I stopped by the Missouri United Methodist Church. Diane Peterson, the site manager, kept a smile on her face as she directed people across the street to the MO Theatre to buy their buttons. Jeanne Kuntz was an usher and along with her smile had on a sequined jacket appropriate for this special night!
The children's area was bustling with activity along with the help of more than six volunteers. Among them were friends Erin & Sharidan (pictured here).
Upstairs at the Methodist Church, father-son team Rick & Nathan Cotner were awaiting the entertainment and the crowds while taking in the Chinese art.
I walked over to the Missouri Theatre and saw many volunteers... Ernie & Norma Falloon, Laura Starjack and Joy Rushing. I enjoyed a visit with Willie Jones who was greeting people outside. His wife and daughter would be selling buttons there later in the evening.
Stamper Commons at Stephens was also busy... Jody Cook was the site manager and had a great group of volunteers. Sally Burnley was entertaining with her drum circle. Bob McClure was serving as an usher.
Then to my assignment for the night - Windsor Auditorium. I enjoyed visiting with Art Jeffrey, Michele Sisson-White and Wayne Boykin who were also volunteering there. I ran into Paul & Anne Heine who were enjoying the entertainment after volunteering earlier at the 5K run.

This is just a taste of all the fabulous people I ran into on Wednesday night. Thank you, thank you to our volunteers - for sharing your time and being wonderful people. I enjoy your friendship and your smiling faces. Here's to a wonderful 2009!

Leigh Britt

First Night - Behind the scenes Part II

2008-12-30T14:52:00.006-06:00

Today was another day full of preparation for First Night! This morning Yuan Gao - known by Karen here in America - spent a few hours in our office making trail mix and cubing cheese to be served in the Green Rooms at the First Night venues. Volunteers, entertainers and crew take some time to relax and grab a bite to eat in the Green Rooms. I'm sure they aren't as fancy as they are in Hollywood!

This afternoon, Karen continued her work in helping set up chairs at the Missouri United Methodist Church and First Christian Church along with Jon Culver, Allison Van Riper and Stephanie Hart. We made quick work of things setting up more than 300 chairs in two locations in less than an hour and a half. Oh, and in there Jon swept the floor, too! Thanks to these volunteers for sharing their afternoon to help with this important, but not so glamorous, project!

Karen (Yuan Gao) is very interesting to me. I met her in September when she volunteered to help at the Festival of the Arts. She had moved to Columbia just a month earlier from China to attend school at MU. I was just flabbergasted at the thought of this young lady, moving half way around the world to a place she's never been where they speak a language that's different from your own. (She speaks excellent English by the way.) She's a brave young woman and an excellent volunteer! Karen is another example of someone who has used volunteering to get to know her new home. She will be the site manager at the Methodist Church tomorrow evening and I know she'll do a great job.

First Night - Behind the scenes

2008-12-29T16:05:00.005-06:00

Any big event has a lot of work that gets done beforehand - behind the scenes where few see it. Although quiet, this work makes a huge difference in the end!

This week there is a good bit of this "behind the scenes" work being done getting ready for First Night on New Year's Eve. Today, Debra Hardin Program Assistant, had five Columbia Hospitality Corps volunteers in our building working with Linda LaFontaine to stuff bags and sort t-shirts for the participants in the First Night 5K Run.

Many thanks to Barb Seabolt, David & Diane O'Hagan, Sylvia Bradfield and Mary Wise for sharing a few hours this afternoon. We appreciate your time and it will make all the difference with the success of the event.

Lang Award nominations due Jan. 9

2008-12-23T08:08:00.004-06:00

About a year ago, the city received a fantastic donation from Leo Hill who was city manager for Columbia in the 1950's. Leo wanted the city to use the funds to create a volunteer award in honor of Howard Lang who was Mayor of the city when he served as manager.

After some discussion, the award was defined to be given to someone who has served our local government - through service as an elected official, on a board or commission, with a special effort or project or as a volunteer in any way. The recipient will be awarded based on impact, initiative and length of service and will receive a $1,000 prize, that they may choose to receive or give to an organization. The nominations for the award are due Jan. 9.

Yesterday I had an interesting call from a young man who was inquiring about the award. He wondered if he started his service now if he might qualify for the award. He also asked if he could nominate himself. I told him while he was welcome to nominate himself or let someone he works with know he is interested, I told him that I expected the nominees to be people who had volunteered for a long period of time in some form of service.

Hmmm... maybe I should have been more encouraging with this young man. I think his call surprised me more than anything else. Maybe the economy is so tough that people are willing to volunteer in the hope of receiving a cash prize. In any event, his call reminded me that volunteering is a long-haul commitment - it's not a sprint. It's difficult for anyone who volunteers to make a big impact in just a few weeks - even if we give it our all! We must be willing to put in our time over a long period and be patient to see the results.

It's that special holiday season...

2008-12-22T16:15:00.003-06:00

This time of year, the Office of Volunteer Services is abuzz preparing for First Night, a family-friendly celebration on New Years' Eve. It takes over 100 volunteers to put on this event and we so greatly appreciate the help of each person who has agreed to help us this year or has in the past. As you might imagine, many people travel at the holidays or want to enjoy the night with family and friends, so it's always a challenge to find those 100+ people to share a few hours to make the event possible.

Please let us know if you are interested in helping with this year's event... we can still use volunteers, especially from 8-10 or 9:45-11:30 p.m. Tasks including serving as an usher/button checker, helping in the children's art area, or serving as an ambassador.

Last week we had a special treat from Tom Masters, a long time Park Patrol volunteer. Tom brought us in some fresh baked chocolate chip cookies! In addition to his dedicated service to the Park Patrol, you may also see him at First Night as an ambassador in the Stephens College buildings. You may also find him about any day on Bear Creek Trail. Thanks, Tom, for your service to Columbia and your thoughtfulness.

Happy Holidays!! Leigh

CARP volunteers say goodbye to Daniel Gibbins

2008-12-19T09:09:00.003-06:00

On Thursday afternoon, several CARP (Columbia Aquatic Restoration Project) volunteers stopped by the Gentry Building to bid farewell to Daniel Gibbins, Horticulturalist with Columbia Parks & Recreation. Daniel was the primary staff person who worked with CARP and it's 39 participating volunteers during the last two years.

Daniel is leaving Columbia to take a job with the City of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Cedar Rapids was hit hard by the floods this last summer and Daniel will be helping them with green space and new parks.

The volunteers who worked with Daniel on projects in our parks enjoyed his sparkling personality and the great faith he had in their work. Just about every project was a big one - with hundreds of plants to install and lots of work to be done. I think volunteers appreciated those challenges and stepped up! He also set high standards for the work and made sure it got done correctly. I think that sends a message to the volunteers that what they do is so very important and makes a lasting impact for years to come.

CARP is going to continue with the next class planned for March 2, 9 and 16 with Brett O'Brien providing the leadership until the new Horticulturalist is in place.

Goodbye, Daniel! Thanks for your work with Columbia volunteers and good luck in Iowa!

Leigh Britt

Goodbye, Dylan!

2008-12-12T10:06:00.006-06:00

The Office of Volunteer Services says goodbye to one of our great youth volunteers, Dylan Conn. Dylan, a junior at Hickman High School, has been volunteering with the city as well as many other community organizations since he moved to Columbia at the age of 11. He was among the first Youth In Action volunteers (a summer volunteer program for youth 12-15) helping with dozens of projects and logging hundreds of hours of service.

Dylan has also been very active with March of Dimes, raising thousands of dollars to support them and taking a role at the national level with their youth board. Locally, he was active helping the Columbia Public Works Solid Waste program and the Missouri Theatre, to name a few!

In April 2008, Dylan was honored with the youth HERO award by the Columbia Daily Tribune and the Voluntary Action Center. This was a well-deserved award for his dedication to service!

Dylan and his family will be moving soon to the Chicago area. Volunteering was a great way for Dylan to get to know Columbia when he moved here and I know that when he arrives at his new home, he will use volunteering as a way to meet people and learn more about his community. Thanks, Dylan, and good luck!!

Leigh Britt

Santa Hotline - Dec. 6

2008-12-06T17:55:00.005-06:00

Saturday, December 6 was the annual Santa Hotline sponsored by Columbia Parks & Recreation. Area children are invited to call the North Pole and share their gift requests with Santa and his helpers. Volunteers staff the North Pole call center, located for one day at least, at Paquin Tower.

Many thanks to Paquin Tower residents, Jamie and residents from Boone Landing and members of Sigma Rho Sigma for sharing a few hours to create memories for local children. This is just another of many ways that volunteers add to our community!

The results are in - volunteer hours up in FY08

2008-11-18T07:28:00.003-06:00

Last night, I provided City Council a report of volunteer hours for FY08 (Oct. 1, 07 - Sept. 30, 08). The great news is that volunteers shared 43,323 hours of service - an 8% increase from the previous year. We estimate that more than 8,000 people volunteered in some way for the city during this time. Members of City Council had many positive things to say about the volunteer program and expressed their appreciation to the many citizens who contribute to the program's success.

Using the national value of $19.51, this time is worth more than $845,000. While putting a dollar figure to this contribution has become fairly easy, I don't think it reflects the true value of volunteering. The true value is in the ownership volunteers have in the community, the pride they can show by being a part of our city services and activities and the relationships they make along the way.

Over the last few years, Columbia has gone through the Visioning process with hundreds of citizens thinking about the future of our community. In the end, the Vision summary is stated:
Columbia will be a connected, informed and engaged community. I find that encouraging. The very vision that has been created is exactly the same thing that volunteers have been doing for Columbia for years!!

Congratulations to our volunteers on a great year and thank you to the more than 8,000 who made this positive report possible.
Leigh Britt

Fowl Shoot - Sidewalk Assessment - Nov. 15

2008-11-17T10:25:00.004-06:00

Saturday, November 15 was a busy morning for volunteers!

Sidewalk Assessment: Twenty-five volunteers braved the cold to come to the GetAbout Columbia office and help with a sidewalk assessment. After a 30 minute review of how to conduct the assessments, volunteers were sent in groups to review sidewalks in an area east of downtown, around Stephens College and into the Benton-Stephens Neighborhood. They got 20 blocks reviewed Saturday morning, in spite of the cold and blustery conditions. (At least it was not snowing or raining!) The information collected will be used to help make decisions on how to improve our sidewalks, with special consideration to those who use wheelchairs.

Kristin Re, a Washington University student who led the project as part of an internship with GetAbout, shared a story about a woman killed by a driver in St. Louis. She used a wheel chair and was forced to ride in the street since there were not adequate sidewalks. This tragedy reminds us of the importance of good, usable sidewalks.

Thanks to the 25 volunteers who made the sidewalk assessment a success! Volunteers included several individuals from the community as well as a group of MU Engineering students who are members of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Fowl Shoot: Just a block away from the sidewalk project, six volunteers were helping with the Fowl Shoot at the Armory Sports Center. The Fowl Shoot, sponsored by Columbia Parks & Recreation, is a free-throw shooting contest with the winner in each age group receiving a coupon for a free turkey. The Columbia Channel has done a wonderful video promoting the event - I invite you to watch it - it's hilarious!

Thanks to the ladies of The Little Sisters of the Gold Rose, Mike McCarrick and Dayton Grover, Jr. for their help with this event. They all helped create memories for the participants at the Fowl Shoot!

Leigh Britt

Tiger Night of Fun

2008-11-04T08:37:00.002-06:00

Halloween night is a fun night for kids and volunteers! For many years, Columbia Parks & Recreation and local businesses have teamed up for the Tiger Night of Fun - a safe alternative to door-to-door trick or treating held at the Hearnes Center Fieldhouse. Volunteers play an important role in the success of the event.

More than 50 local civic clubs, businesses, and other organizations, brought a game or activity for kids 6th grade and younger. Pictured here are the staff from the Fun City Youth Academy who brought a ring-toss game.

I enjoy volunteering at the Tiger Night of Fun because it exposes me to current culture. With every new costume, I learned something about what is popular with kids these days. The new one for me were characters from High School Musical. I guess I need to get out more often!

More importantly, it allowed me - and the dozens of other volunteers - to interact with children and their families and create memories.

In the course of two hours, more than 2,700 children and their families entered the fieldhouse and had their night of fun. It was all possible because of the work of hundreds of volunteers. Thank you!!

Medical Surge Drill

2008-10-30T09:46:00.002-05:00

On Tuesday, October 28, local hospitals came together to hold a medical surge drill. The scenario was a tornado that hit town, overwhelming the emergency rooms of our local hospitals.

The drill was held in the Hearnes Center Fieldhouse and included setting up the room as it might be in a real event. Participants were registered using the Elliott badging system - the same system that would be used to identify and track volunteers following a real emergency.

In the afternoon, participants, made up largely of area nursing students, served as "pretend" patients while others were part of the labor pool.

Volunteers with the Columbia/Boone County Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) also helped with the drill. MRC volunteers would be part of the response and would assist local hospitals as needed. One of the best ways that you could assist following a disaster is to affiliate now with a local group, like the MRC, the American Red Cross or the fire department's CERT team.

To learn more about getting involved with the MRC, contact Betsy Smith at the Columbia/Boone County Health Department - 874-7285 or ECS@GoColumbiaMO.com.

Plant the Promise

2008-10-20T11:18:00.002-05:00

This week local youth will begin planting 1,300 red tulip bulbs at schools, churches, public housing facilities, homes and businesses, mostly in the central city, to "Plant the Promise." The project is a joint effort of the City of Columbia's Office of Volunteer Services and the Youth Community Coalition. Through "Plant the Promise" youth will make a promise to think about their actions and stay drug and alcohol free.

Not only do we want this project to be a valuable experience for youth to give more thought to making good decisions... we also want to help beautify central Columbia.

Most of our Adopt-A-Spot Beautification projects are on the fringe of the city as part of a new street project. Unfortunately, that has meant fewer projects in the middle of town. The bulbs will be one step toward bringing additional beauty to the central city.

This project is one that although has been on my mind for some time, did not get put together until a few months ago when Becky Markt with the Youth Community Coalition approached me with the Plant the Promise concept. In a short amount of time, we have had commitments from many youth groups who want to do the planting and from contacts representing more than 45 planting sites all over town.

The bottom line here is that every part of our community - public, private, nonprofit - see the value in adding beauty. Giving our youth another opportunity to think about staying away from drugs and alcohol is important to all of us, too. When we can join those two efforts we can have a fantastic project!

So, if you see a group of young people planting bulbs this week, ask them what they are up to. They may be Planting the Promise! We'll all enjoy their work next spring with a show of red tulips.

America In Bloom Symposium

2008-10-07T08:15:00.003-05:00

I returned on Sunday from the America in Bloom (AIB) Symposium held in Columbus, Ohio October 2-4. Earlier this year, Columbia entered the AIB competition. Through the program, participating communities are evaluated on eight areas related to appearance, environment and community involvement. City staff completed a comprehensive report on city activities and our community was visited in June by two judges who took a careful look at many aspects of our city and met with dozens of city staff and citizens.

How we did: While we did not win our size category (50,000-100,000 population), Columbia did earn four out of five blooms and received special recognition for our Community Involvement efforts. Columbia has thousands of volunteers who support our municipal efforts on everything from litter control to beautification projects and neighborhood watch to household hazardous waste - and everything in between and beyond! I was very pleased that we recognized in this area because it reflects so well the dedication of our residents and also the commitment staff have made in so many city departments. Congratulations Columbia!

Community Gardens: The most impressive part of my visit to Columbus were the community gardens in cooperation with the Franklin Park Conservatory. Abandoned city lots have been leased to neighborhood groups for $1 per year. Those empty city lots which were once havens for trouble and crime have been turned into an oasis of beauty and community pride. This photo is of a juvenile offenders garden that included neat raised vegetable gardens as well as a landscaped garden along the perimeter. I know we have some programs like this in Columbia, but after hearing from those in Columbus, I think there are lots of reasons to expand what happens here. What a great way to bring people together, build pride, increase safety and produce locally-grown food!

I will soon post all the documents related to our results in America In Bloom. You can read them, as well as the rest of the details about our entry on line.

Leigh Britt

Another Busy Weekend...

2008-09-29T13:01:00.005-05:00

This last weekend - September 27-28 - was another busy one for City of Columbia volunteers. Pictured here is a father and daughter who picked up trash near Flat Branch Park as part of the Hinkson Clean Sweep. Volunteers left their mark on our city several ways:

volunteers assisted at the Columbia Festival of the Arts with set up, children's events, surveys, staffing the information booths and booth sitting for artists.
the TreeKeepers planted trees at Auburn Hills Park, a new neighborhood park on the north end of Derby Ridge Road.
volunteers from Karis Community Church and other concerned citizens worked to remove graffiti in the central city.
more than 200 volunteers worked to pick up two tons of trash in our creeks through the Hinkson Clean Sweep.

We live in an amazing community where literally hundreds of people share their time each week. I invite you to view a slide show with more photos from Saturday.

Leigh Britt

Medical Reserve Corps

2008-09-26T16:08:00.004-05:00

Who will help if we have a major medical emergency in our community like the pandemic flu? Who will provide medical assistance in shelters following a disaster? Who provides the extra hands during flu clinics? The Medical Reserve Corps!

The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) is a group of volunteers who work in cooperation with the Columbia/Boone County Health Department. The group includes those with medical training as well as laypeople.

The Boone County MRC meets once a month, normally the fourth Thursday at 6 p.m. at the health department. Last night they met to talk about a state-wide volunteer database of medical volunteers and also to create a photo ID for each volunteer that will assist them in having access to sites where their help is needed. In this photo, they are working with the Elliot badging system.

The Medical Reserve Corps is gearing up for fall flu clinics and welcome new volunteers. To learn more, contact Betsy Smith in the Columbia/Boone County Health Department at 874-7285.

CARP Celebration

2008-09-24T16:19:00.004-05:00

Last night we held a special picnic for volunteers in CARP - the Columbia Aquatic Restoration Project. Over the last two years, volunteers have shared Saturday mornings with parks staff planting aquatic plants, doing maintenance along shorelines (aka - weeding!) and other projects to enhance our aquatic resources. Much of their work has been done at Stephens Lake, Flat Branch Park and Twin Lakes.

Pictured here is Ken Torke (center) one of the dozen volunteers who was recognized for sharing at least 18 hours with the program. Councilman Chris Janku is to his left and Daniel Gibbins, Horticulturalist with Parks & Recreation, is on his right.

CARP volunteers begin the program by attending a three night class where they learn about aquatic management, plants, insects, stormwater, etc. - information that assists them during the volunteer experience. The 2009 class will be held on Monday evenings, March 2, 9 & 16 at the Park Management Center.

The CARP volunteers are hard workers - each dedicated to lending a hand in our parks. They also have a great sense of humor and like to have fun! I'm sure you would find being a CARPer quite rewarding and I invite you to join us as we start the program again in March.

Leigh Britt

Westwinds Park, Heritage Festival - September 21

2008-09-22T11:43:00.006-05:00

Saturday was a banner day for volunteering! To start with, TreeKeepers volunteers and residents of the Westwinds Park Neighborhood Association joined forces for a work day at Westwinds Park under the leadership of the Parks & Recreation forestry crew. The group planted several trees to create a screen from Stadium Boulevard, mulched and composted around the trees, and then tackled re-graveling a section of trail damaged by the recent heavy rains.

In a little more than two hours, the group had all the work done, showing that many many hands really do make light work! When the work was completed, the group gathered at the Westwinds shelter for food and fellowship and a visit from Councilman Jerry Wade. This was a fantastic example of a neighborhood that got involved and made a difference! Thanks to the TreeKeepers the more than a dozen residents who came out to help.

After leaving Westwinds Park, I went to Nifong Park to visit the volunteers at the Heritage Festival. It was a beautiful day so the volunteers in the children's area were busy!! They were doing all kinds of things - making rope from yarn, creating mushrooms and pumpkins out of newpaper, and finding arrowheads in the sand and keeping them as necklaces. It took more than 75 volunteers to help with the Heritage Festival. Thanks to each of them who helped create a special memory for children and families.

Leigh Britt

Stream Extravaganza!

2008-09-19T08:49:00.002-05:00

Last night the Stream Extravaganza was held at Flat Branch Park as part of Twilight Festival. This special event, organized by the Public Works Stormwater program, aims to educate the public about our streams, stormwater, and the animals that exist in the environment. Hundreds of people came to the event - including many families.

Events like the Stream Extravaganza don't happen without the help of volunteers! Pictured here are David Melegrito and Rachel Pia staffing a table on behalf of the Master Naturalists on the topic of ground and surface water systems. David and Rachel were among many volunteers who came to educate the public about their passion for the environment.

David and Rachel are active volunteers in many ways! David is active with the Fil-Am Association with an Adopt-A-Spot beautification bed in Rollins Road and Rachel is part of the city's TreeKeepers program.

To view more pictures from the Stream Extravaganza, visit our Flickr slide show. Thanks to the many volunteers who made last night's event a success!!

Leigh Britt

Meet the Aktion Club!

2008-09-17T08:55:00.004-05:00

Let me introduce you to some great people - the members of the Aktion Club! Aktion Club was created about five years ago as a service organization for a special group of Columbia residents. They have been active City of Columbia volunteers by participating several years in Cleanup Columbia. You might also see their lovely Adopt-A-Spot beautification bed at the corner of Paris & Hinkson, just east of College Avenue.

Aktion Club members are some of the friendliest people I know! They nearly always remember my name and have lots of enthusiasm. John Pierce, past president of the club and current vice president, always asks how Mayor Hindman is doing and keeps up with City Council meetings by watching the Columbia channel.

The Aktion Club is a great part of the fabric of our community. I'm glad to know them and so appreciate their service to our city.

"Anybody can be great because anybody can serve." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Volunteering enhances the college experience...

2008-08-27T15:38:00.006-05:00

Today was the annual MU volunteer fair - a great opportunity for us make contact with dozens of students who are looking to share their time. I think back to many years ago when I was going to school and volunteering never crossed my mind. "What? Me? Volunteer? What's that all about?" Of course, at the time I'm sure the whole world revolved around what I wanted to do and not what I could do for others.

Thankfully times and attitudes have changed. Students on all of our campuses and public schools share their time by volunteering. Volunteering can have a big impact for students:

Experience for a future job

Time to spend with friends

An opportunity to learn about Columbia

A chance to see the world in a different perspective

I am so thankful for the work students do for us as volunteers and can't wait to meet the new batch. In addition to the great young people at MU I met today, I had a chance to visit with nearly 300 freshman at Stephens College on Friday and Debra Hardin in our office will be at Hickman tomorrow.

Pictured here is Mike Heimos who works with the Public Works Volunteer Program talking with a potential volunteer about their opportunities to help the environment.

Leigh Britt

Step Forward Day

2008-08-25T16:32:00.002-05:00

Saturday, August 23 was "Step Forward Day" - an opportunity for MU students to share their time by volunteering before school starts. I had a great morning with five young ladies - Kiara, Kim, Sam, Evan and Maddie. They assisted with an Adopt-A-Spot located on State Farm Parkway near the recycling area. This bed was started by Derek Moeller as an Eagle Scout project and will be taken over by the Master Naturalists.

Under the direction of Jane Fore with the Master Naturalists, we did some lasagna gardening. We laid down newsprint and spread mulch on top. The newsprint will hopefully suffocate the grass and weeds below. We had fun pulling the newspaper out of the recycling bins and asking people for their newsprint. This was recycling at its best!!

Later this fall and next spring, the Master Naturalists will plant the bed with wild flowers. Many thanks to our Step Forward volunteers for their hard work!! Be looking for great things to happen in this spot in the coming months.
Leigh Britt