FV Newsletter

On Saturday, April 27, 2019, approximately 150 volunteers from the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council and various local interfaith groups joined together to complete an enormous public service project for the annual Helping Hands event at the Fountain Valley Sports Park.

The work primarily focused on the turf common areas around Softball Fields 1-5 and the planter beds that border the east fence line that separates Mile Square Golf Course from the Sports Park. Volunteers installed 2,000 sq. ft. of sod in the common area bare spots, planted 200 1-gallon coast rosemary shrubs, and 50 1-gallon star jasmine shrubs. Volunteers also removed weeds and placed 90 cubic yards of certified mulch into planters and around existing trees after they completed the shrub planting. City staff also assisted Fountain Valley residents with bagging 80 cubic yards of garden humus that was donated by Republic Services for use in their gardens at home.

We had the pleasure of coordinating service projects with the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council and local interfaith groups for the past several years. In our experience, there isn’t a more motivated and hard working group of people anywhere. Their can-do attitude and work ethic demonstrate the true spirit of community service at its finest. Without their community support, many of these important tasks would be delayed indefinitely and the costs to perform them without volunteers would be enormous. This is what truly makes Fountain Valley “A Nice Place to Live.”

Special thanks also go to Fountain Valley Public Works staff members Marco Garcia, David Salcedo, Chris Bollesen, Thien Hoang, Robert Vega, Yair Sanchez and Tony Villegas without whom the event would not have been possible.

We would also like to recognize our contract landscape maintenance provider BrightView Landscape Services for their efforts. BrightView donated 150 of the coast rosemary shrubs. BrightView also cut out and prepared the sod areas beforehand to ensure the sod application was a breeze.

We would also like to recognize the individual leaders from the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council that spent countless hours in the planning of this project, as well as coordinating and supervising the volunteers during the event. Special heartfelt thanks to Director of Public Affairs Jynene Johnson, Lucy Schmauch, Glenn Grandis, and other various project coordinators. This important project couldn’t have been accomplished without their commitment to public service, advance planning, dedication and efforts.