Swimming with the VPRD

Christina and Greg pose for a fancy photo

Our team returned to Vinton, Iowa after 6 long and hard weeks of living life on a farm and trail building in Evendale, Ohio. Vinton is the location for the North Central Region Campus and was where we began our term in NCCC, back in February. For our second round, we were assigned to work with the Vinton Parks and Recreation Department (VPRD). The project will give us a variety of different experiences as each week we will have different goals and locations. The first goal we had was to prepare the community swimming pools to be opened on Memorial weekend. This required scraping of the old paint from three large pools and painting using two-part paint. The pool is painted every one to three years. With a team of 9, we were successfully able to have it painted in a week.

There is also a large slide that is being painted as well. This requires lots of scaffolding and no fear of heights. We are slowly realizing that heights is a common fear on our team which means the two to three people who aren’t afraid have a lot of things to paint and assist with. We are hoping to work on these fears together as much of this project so far has required ladders and scaffolding.

Site Supervisor, Brian, puts finishing touches on pool

We are excited for the experience with working with this organization and meeting the locals in Vinton. This organization is actually one of the first non-profits that asked for an AmeriCorps NCCC team when the campus in Vinton, Iowa was first established in 2008. The VPRD has received teams ever since and it is a blessing to be the team assigned to work with them.

~Hilary

Dr. Trailbuilder or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Pulaski

So the blog rotation has finally come to me. So far my team has touched on everything under the sky, it seems. I want to reflect on the project as a whole.

When Darcy first told us that we would be spending six weeks at Gorman Heritage Farm doing trail-building, my jaw dropped. Six weeks. Trail building. Eight hours a day. For someone who spent the past four years at college majoring in movie-watching, spending (at least) 240 hours outside doing manual labor wasn’t at the top of my list of desired projects.

Before we even left campus in Vinton, I felt defeated. Six weeks. Forty-two days. 1008 hours. I tried to rationalize:

“It’s enough time to quit three jobs (Two Weeks Notice).”

“It’s not too much longer than it takes for infected to starve (28 Days).”

“It’s only enough time for James Franco to saw through his arm seven times (127 Hours).”

That didn’t really help, so I decided I would do exactly as Bob from the movie What About Bob?, “One step at a time.”

The first step was getting to the house. If you’ve never packed a fifteen passenger full of what ten people think they need for six weeks and then packed the said people in, then you have never lived. A 5:30 a.m. departure quickly turns into 7a.m. if you’re not careful (we weren’t careful). The next ten hours traveling were a major blur, but all I remember is that we made it to the farmhouse alive and in one piece.

Moving into the farmhouse was the next step. My initial thought? “It’s all so familiar, yet I know I’ve never been here before. I feel so at home,” as Sophie from Howl’s Moving Castle, so eloquently put it. Ten people and one bathroom could have been a problem, but somehow that was never a reason for conflict on our team.

Thankfully, our work wasn’t just trail building; we also did some invasive species removal. The main culprit was this nasty plant called Lonicera maackii, or Amur Honeysuckle. What kept driving me forward was a powerful line I remember, clear as a bell, from Karate Kid (the original, of course), “Sweep the root.” I’m pretty sure that was the Cobra-Kai Sensei, Kreese, encouraging his students to beat the honeysuckle in some sort of karate duel. If I remember correctly, the honeysuckle whipped the boy in the face, landing a victory.

Anyway, those six weeks zipped by. Whoooosh! Even as I’m writing this, I still can’t believe it went by so fast. I am so thankful even if I don’t fully remember every day. Zeniba from Spirited Away reminds me that “once you do something, you never forget, even if you don’t remember.”

It’s strange to think that I may never see any of those people ever again… ever. For a brief six weeks I stayed in a farm house in southern Ohio and helped carve a trail in the side of a hill so that people may reach the top easier. For a fleeting moment I was a part of their lives and they were a part of mine.

If I could leave one thought to the people of Evendale and anyone who sees the work of volunteers and AmeriCorps NCCC members, it would be that of Capa in Sunshine, “If you wake up one morning and notice it’s a particularly beautiful day, you’ll know we made it.”

~Phil

Day Living in the 1800s

Electronics that were kept in Darcy's room during the reflection

One of the reflection activities our team thought of prior to beginning our work at Gorman Heritage Farm was to spend a “Day Living in the 1800s”. The purpose of this reflection was for our team to see what it may have been like to live at Gorman Heritage Farm during the time when it was first started.

The rules were simple – you had to give up all electronics, have no water besides an outside pump, no showers, no kitchen electronics, all light switches were taped, no camera usage (hence why this post has one photo), and no use of vehicles. We simply had to find a way to get through the day and night. The event started at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday April 27 lasted until Thursday, April 28, 12:00 p.m.

It was interesting to see how our team interacted with no electronics or lights present. There were people singing songs in the dark, playing Jenga (dangerous) and dribbling balls indoors or counting dollar bills. The following day we spent some time reflecting on how much our culture is use to and relies on electronics for communication as well as security. We could only imagine how it was for Jim and Dorothy Gorman, who were those who last lived in the farmhouse. And even before them I can't imagine how it was to create the house with the use of no power tools. This reflection is something that we plan on doing again in the future and see how our interpretations change on that which we think is important and give value too.

~Gaby

Top 10 Must-Sees in Cincy!

10. Wal-Mart
Just kidding! Sort of. I hate to admit it, but much of our free time in the Queen’s City was spent at Wally World. I mostly blame this on our 10pm Sunday night grocery runs when it seems Super Wal-Mart was the only grocery store open.

9. Cincinnati Nature Center
Maple 4 spent one of our workdays at the CNC. It was great to visit another location that, like Gorman, that is working to conserve nature in the Greater Cincinnati area. Here we learned a new way to remove honeysuckle with loppers and herbicide. Thanks to Kurt at the CNC for giving us a tour of the beautiful trails and foliage.

8. National Underground Railroad Freedom Center
A sobering visit to this museum taught our team more about the history of slavery in the United States and the current state of slavery in the world today. It was interesting to learn the role the Ohio River played during the Civil War as slaves from Kentucky crossed over the water into Ohio where Underground Railroad conductors helped guide them on their way to freedom in Canada.

7. Reds Game
To be honest, baseball is not my fave, but this was a good time nonetheless. Since the Cincinnati Reds were the first professional baseball team in America, it seemed a must-see. I spent close to a day’s pay on nachos, but the stadium overlooking the Ohio River was great and you can’t put a price on bonding with your teammates!

6. The Bridges
There are few neato bridges connecting Cincy to Kentucky. The Daniel Carter Beard Bridge is nicknamed the “Big Mac” because of its yellow paint. The pedestrian-only Purple People Bridge connects to Kentucky’s Newport on the Levee, a cool place to shop around or have lunch on the waterfront. And last but not least is the Roebling Suspension Bridge. Built back in the 1860’s when Lincoln was president, this is a nice piece of history. My advice on this last one is: DON’T RUN ACROSS! I made this mistake and had a terrible fall, tearing up my knee pretty bad. At least it made for a good story.

5. Cincinnati Zoo
At the second oldest-zoo in the U.S. you can see polar bears, lions, manatees, bonobos, and so much more. We spent 3 hours here and I never even realized there was a botanical garden attached!

4. Skyline & Gold Star Chili
Who’d a thunk chili was a staple in the Cincinnati diet? Being an East Coast gal I had no idea, but was happy to taste-test. I’ll give them both props for presentation since you can get heaping loads of chili on your choice of hot dog or spaghetti at either location, but Gold Star definitely blew skyline out of the water for me.

3. Jungle Jim’s
Waterfalls, an animatronics lion dressed up like Elvis singing “Jailhouse Rock,” a myriad of hot sauces displayed on an antique fire truck, and a 765lb sleeve of provolone cheese. This is what you can find at the most amazing grocery store I have ever visited. If you’re in the area, stop by and support this family-owned business that’s worked its way up from selling produce on abandoned gas station lots.

2. Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
Converted from a working train station opened in the 1930’s, Union Terminal is now home to the Cincinnati History Museum, Omnimax Theater, and Museum of Natural History and Science. You can still catch the Amtrak here as well. The highlight for me was this miniature model of the city.

1. Gorman Heritage Farm
How can I make a Top 10 list and not include our home for the last 6 weeks?! Gorman Heritage Farm is a great place if you’re looking to learn about a working farm. Bring your kids and introduce them to a mule, volunteer to work in the gardens with John, or better yet take a jog through the amazing trails–constructed in part by yours truly Maple 4.

~Darcy