The Greater Victoria Green Team in collaboration with Friends of North Saanich Parks organized a community engagement activity at Lillian Hoffar Park in North Saanich. We removed about 7 cubic metres of invasive plants like English Ivy and Blackberry.
Thank-you to everyone for participating: Adam, Amina, Anne, Cathie, Chris, Connie, Ella, Francine, Jarrett, Jennifer, Joseph, Karen, Lea, Malcolm, Sam, Suzan, Tara, Tom, Tauria and the three little ones!
Thank you very much to the District of North Saanich for contributing to our activities in North Saanich! Thanks to The Victoria Foundation and Canada Post Foundation for contributing as well! Your support made it all possible.
Thank you to our in-kind sponsors for providing thank-you gifts to our volunteers: LUSH for providing natural perfume, West Coast Seeds, and dog poop bags from Earth Rated!!
PHOTO ALBUM FROM THE EVENT IS FOUND HERE
Highlights
- 20 volunteers participated (11 GVGT volunteers) and contributed 60 volunteer hours (38 GVGT hours)!
- 10 out of 11 GVGT volunteers had never been to Lillian Hoffar Park before!
- 7 of the 11 GVGT volunteers had never removed English Ivy before!
- We removed 7 cubic metres of invasive plants like English Ivy!
- We cleared an area of habitat approx. 200 square metres
- Volunteers came from Saanich, Victoria, Oak Bay, North Saanich, Sidney and Sooke!
What people said about their experience
I enjoy the group dynamics, and the sense of accomplishment in removing the invasive species.
It helps the resident volunteers get a second wind. The Green Team has ‘broken the back’ of the Invasive Species in yet another area of the Park in question, and that allows us to keep on with our weekly grind. When combined, it really seems to make a difference: in outcome for the park, in spirit for our group, in ‘gestalt’ of community and individuals involved.
I have no doubt that this program educates young, inexperienced folks, on a lot of levels: volunteering wise, environmentally, botanically, physically, and maybe, some realities of the natural world around us.
I truly believe in the health benefits of being active and engaged in the outdoors. And the value of doing meaningful work, in community, must benefit the psychology of most everyone. At least, it does for me.
Before and After photos
Volunteers in Action
