9-12-08 United Way Day of Caring
Today, Friday (12th) the weather was beautiful as we had a large and enthusiastic group of 64 adults that came out from Microsoft for the United way Day of Caring event.
As people arrived, we got kicked off doing some maintenance digging of Himalayan blackberries.
Some worked on large root balls, while others partook in the simple joy of being outside in the sun and amongst friends. 
A small group of “movers” got busy moving small piles of debris onto a big pile using small tarps. They managed to haul 22 cubic yards of debris to the larger piles. WOW!
With a couple of hours of work under our belts, we broke for lunch at noon. Some people pressed on through lunch not stopping… maybe it was the awesome music played by Polkamotive (4 person polka band) which gave them the extra energy and inspiration. After the lunch break, Alyssa started a group on sheet mulching, a process where a cleared area is covered in overlapped cardboard and mulched. After clearing the Himalayan blackberry grow back, cardboard was laid out and a “bucket brigade” was formed to transfer the mulch via buckets from the pile onto the cardboard. In the last two hours, this group sheet mulched 800 sq.ft.! They even worked overtime to make sure this was completed. We wrapped up with a celebration of “hoorays” and applause by all who participated. The whole group for the day managed to maintain 55,000 sq.ft of the upper Soundway Property and still had a good time. The work was much appreciated and the group was amazing! Hope to see you guys again! 
As people arrived, we got kicked off doing some maintenance digging of Himalayan blackberries.
Some worked on large root balls, while others partook in the simple joy of being outside in the sun and amongst friends. 
A small group of “movers” got busy moving small piles of debris onto a big pile using small tarps. 
They managed to haul 22 cubic yards of debris to the larger piles. WOW!
With a couple of hours of work under our belts, 
we broke for lunch at noon. Some people pressed on through lunch not stopping… maybe it was the awesome music played by Polkamotive (4 person polka band) 
which gave them the extra energy and inspiration. After the lunch break, Alyssa started a group on sheet mulching, a process where a cleared area is covered in overlapped cardboard and mulched.
After clearing the Himalayan blackberry grow back, cardboard was laid out and a “bucket brigade” was formed to transfer the mulch via buckets from the pile onto the cardboard. 
In the last two hours, this group sheet mulched 800 sq.ft.! They even worked overtime to make sure this was completed. We wrapped up with a celebration of “hoorays” and applause by all who participated. The whole group for the day managed to maintain 55,000 sq.ft of the upper Soundway Property and still had a good time. The work was much appreciated and the group was amazing! Hope to see you guys again! 
