From The Ground Up.

July 2011.

 

 

We're halfway to our summer fundraising goal!


Can you help us make it the rest of the way? Please donate now!

 

Individual donations are essential to our ability to employ the Green Team youth, help families reduce their energy bills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Please donate to help us achieve our 2011 goals.


People on the Ground

Gabe Montoya
Rocky Mountain Green Team Leader



Glen Huitt
Energy Auditor



James Harris
Energy Auditor



Julian Adorney
Energy Efficiency Intern



Patricia Gurule
Active Living Outreach Specialist


Scott Willingham
Strive to Not Drive Coordinator


We'd also like to thank the following for recent grant awards and sponsorships that make our work possible:







Strive to Not Drive in West Highland - By Scott Willingham
In honor of Earth Day, volunteers hit the streets offering free gifts and resources to encourage residents of the West Highland neighborhood to walk, bike, and utilize public transportation. Volunteers gave out bus maps and schedules, bike maps, hiking and biking guides; and even free gifts like RTD passes and pedometers. Groundwork Denver's Green Team even fixed flat tires for free to help people get rolling!

Thirteen businesses in the West Highland business district supported Strive to Not Drive by offering discounts to patrons who walked or biked to their shops on April 22nd and 23rd. We'd like to thank the participating businesses: Garnet Gecko, Mondo Vino, Mead St. Station, The Uncommon Thread, Heidi's Brooklyn Deli, El Camino Tavern, Seafood Landing, Pizza Alley, Iselin Chiropractic, Highlands Cork and Coffee, Kismet, Urbanistic Tea & Bike Shop, and Sushi Hai. Visit www.StrivetoNotDrive.org to access resources to bike, walk and ride.


Shade and Fruit for Commerce City - By Katie Sullivan
Our tree-planting project in Commerce City was a huge success; 72 trees were planted in one afternoon! Forty-nine families signed up for free trees and came together as a community to plant them. Families were given the opportunity to select fruit trees as a means of increasing access to healthy food for the future. The fully bilingual training, plus a handful of bilingual volunteers, helped bridge the language barriers in the neighborhood. Neighbors got to know one another and now have the commonality of their trees/árboles to talk about when they see each other on the street.

Our gratitude goes to The Park People for helping us select and order the trees, and for generally sharing their expertise to make this a successful project.


Walking In Valverde - By Tangier Barnes
As part of our work to improve access to the South Platte River trail, we recently coordinated a walking audit with a group of middle schoolers from Valverde. A dozen middle school students from the DU Bridge Project's Columbine Site walked a mile and a half through Valverde's mostly commercial/industrial area, noting problems and brainstorming ways to improve the walkability of the neighborhood. Most walked, however one student pushed a stroller and two were on roller blades, which helped everyone get a sense for the barriers that exist when trying to access the South Platte River trail without driving. The students provided input during the walking audit through guided discussion and by filling out a check list to rate the walkability of the neighborhood. This student input will help determine where Groundwork Denver should invest resources to make it easier for Valverde residents to access the South Platte River trail and to make it easier for residents to walk and bike in their neighborhood. Special thanks go to the staff at the DU Bridge Project Columbine Site and to the staff at Fehr and Peers for technical expertise with the project.


Congratulations Graduates! - By Shane Wright
Congratulations to our Green Team graduates! We are proud of the work they have done with Groundwork Denver and excited to announce their plans for the future. Silivere Bakomeza will be attending Aurora Community College; Jesus Sanchez is heading to CU Boulder to study Mechanical Engineering; Braylen Aldridge is heading to Florida Memorial College; Angelica Gonzales, Sadot Casteneda, and Veronica Jaramillo will be attending Community College of Denver; and Carlos Macias will move on to the University of Colorado Denver. Thanks to all of these amazing young people for their hard work. We wish them the best in the future.


Governor's Service Awards - By Felicia Sheumaker
On Friday, May 20th, Groundwork Denver was honored to receive the 2011 Outstanding Non-Profit Organization Award from the Governor's Commission on Community Service. This award was a reflection of all of you, our wonderful volunteers, supporters and partners. It was exciting to visit the Colorado State Capitol building (the first time for some of our Green Team youth) and be in the presence of other outstanding organizations and individuals. Along with the award, recipients received a compass engraved with the words "Leading By Example," which we are proud to do now and in the future. Thank you to everyone who was able to attend the ceremony and celebrate this award with us.

Community Action. Environmental Results.

The mission of Groundwork Denver is to bring about the sustained improvement of the physical environment
and promote health and well-being through community-based partnerships and action.

©2011 Groundwork Denver | www.groundworkcolorado.org
Mailing address: 2740 W. 28th Avenue   |   Denver, CO 80211   |   Phone: 303.455.5600   |   Fax: 720.306.8026