Cloverdale Comments - Covid-19 safe volunteer workdays at Cloverdale Community Garden-September 2020
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ah, the last, lazy days of summer! Spending time outdoors benefits our health, brightens our spirits, and can also help the environment and our community.
Have you visited Cloverdale's Community Garden recently? Located at 205 S Cloverdale Blvd, the idea of the garden first sprouted in 2009 through the efforts of the Cloverdale Senior Center. The Chamber of Commerce took over managing the garden in 2017 and made an agreement with the family that owns the one-acre parcel to allow the community to plant and enjoy the garden. In 2019, after a couple of years of inactivity, Ron Pavelka from the Chamber met with a handful of people to revitalize the garden.
The Green Thumb Garden Club of Cloverdale stepped up and began improvements, with the help of landscape designer Melissa Cox. Currently, volunteers are busy working to make the garden a community gathering space where the club and other groups can educate people about growing and using plants and produce. This month, volunteer workdays are scheduled for September 12 and 26. Contact Cindi Buell at cindib@sonic.net for more information. We practice social distancing wear masks and have sanitizer on hand.
The mission of Clean River Alliance (cleanriveralliance.org) is to remove trash from the Russian River watershed and to educate citizens about the problem of trash in our waters by creating more public clean-up events. Volunteers gather on the first Sunday of every month at 10:00 a.m. at Cloverdale River Park. Plan to bring your mask, as these events follow active county health orders.
This year, the California Coastal Commission has announced that the 36th annual California Coastal Cleanup will start at your front door. Trash travels through storm drains, creeks, and rivers to become beach and ocean pollution. Visit coastalcleanupday.org for resources to help clean the beach by picking up litter in your community.
All of Cloverdale's seven city parks are open. Please remember to observe social distancing and wear masks when appropriate. If you haven't checked out the Porterfield Creek Trails Open Space Preserve, now is a great time to visit! This 250-acre property offers a trail system that provides different options for hiking and biking while protecting natural resources. The entrance is located at the west end of Skyview Drive. To download a printable map, enter "Porterfield Creek trail map" in your browser's search bar.
To round out your summer with some old-fashioned fun, go to the drive-in movies! Alexander Valley Film Society's September 12 feature is Furious 7. Gates open at 7:00 pm at the Cloverdale Citrus Fair, and the movie starts at sundown. Go to their website for tickets and details: avfilmsociety.org/events/september-12-carpool-cinema/.
Long time Cloverdale Senior Multipurpose Center member Ann Gillis will turn 100 years young on September 8. Melanie asked her how she would like to celebrate that milestone during this time of Covid. Would she like a “drive by” celebration where she would sit in the Senior Center yard and wave to all who come by, or would she like Melanie to collect birthday cards to give to her on her special day? Ann carefully weighed her options, and here is what she said.
“I miss all the fun things I used to do but now it’s down to nothing due to Covid. I feel very fortunate to have my daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter who help me out. I don’t want people to spend their money on cards. I want to wait and have a party later, I want to be able to hug everyone in person; I miss giving everyone a hug, I love everyone.” Ann would welcome phone calls for any reason or to wish her a happy birthday; her phone number is 894-5516. The conversation ended with Melanie telling Ann that she is one of the most positive people she'd ever met. Ann laughed and said Melanie had made her day just by calling her, but Melanie knows that she's the lucky one!
Ta-ta for now!
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