2015-Evening Garden Harvesting at the Governor's Mansion

Start Date-End Date: 10/01/2015-10/01/2015 Land Manager Office: Grow Local Colorado Land Manager Contact: Barbara Masoner Funding Partner: Programmatic Partner: Summary: NOTE: Registration for this opportunity is FULL. If you register, you will be placed on the wait list. As space becomes available, we will move individuals off the wait list. Description: ABOUT THE STEWARDSHIP SITE The Colorado Governor's Mansion, located in the heart of Denver's Capitol Hill neighborhood, is a member of the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Originally built as a private residence in 1908, it was given to the State of Colorado as an executive residence in 1959. In 2011, Governor Hickenlooper donated the plants that were to become the First Family's Giving Garden, planted by Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado in conjunction with Grow Local Colorado. ABOUT THE VOLUNTEER PROJECT Volunteers of all ages will gather to perform one final harvest before putting the new gardens to rest for winter. This project, in partnership with Grow Local Colorado, is one of several where we will be wrapping up the gardening season at vegetable gardens that were planted in the spring. The produce harvested from this project will bedonated to The Gathering Place, a local women's shelter.Volunteer work will be fun, easy, and child-friendly.Tasks will involve harvesting, weeding, and raking the soil. Free dinner will be provided. PARTNERS & SPONSORS Grow Local Colorado Latitude/Longitude: 39.728752, -104.98192 Additional Information: Camping Available: No Physical Difficulty: Easy High Altitude Project: No Desired Number of Volunteers: 15 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 10 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 4 Total Volunteer Days: 14 Total Unique Volunteers: 14 Total Volunteer Hours: 21 Staff Hours: 3 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: On the evening of Thursday, Oct. 1st, 14 volunteers came to the Governor's Mansion in Denver to harvest the vegetable garden, and prep the garden for winter. The volunteers harvested 13 lbs of veggies--8 of which were greens. Barb from Grow Local Colorado said that it has not been a good year for the gardens, due to all the early hail, and rabbits. The volunteers also removed 100 feet of hosing and 10 planting towers. Everyone was happy at the end of the night with donated burritos from Chipotle. Successes and Challenges: There were too many volunteers. For these projects, we really only need 10 max. Lessons Learned: Special Notes: These are really great, easy projects for VOC. They give us exposure to a new audience, and an opportunity for people to volunteer on a weeknight. Stewardship Education: Provided by VOC staff and Grow Local Colorado staff. Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: Description of Accidents/Incidents: Description of Work Completed: