Friday, August 19th was a beautiful day in Portland, Oregon. And the 250 volunteers from Conservation Alliance member companies KEEN, Columbia Sportswear, Icebreaker, Merrell, Horny Toad, REI, and Egan & Associates took advantage of one of the summer's nicest days! Pulling ivy, rebuilding trails and demolishing a decommissioned foot-bridge in Forest Park and Sellwood Park, these folks earned their lunch!
Stephen Hatfield, Stewardship Director of The Forest Park Conservancy announced during luNch, "The volunteers I was working with at Pittock Mansion were unbelievable… the hardest working crew I have ever spend a day with!". In just one day, "volunteers from The Conservation Alliance Backyard Collective provide about 10% of Forest Park's annual volunteer hours!"
The Conservation Alliance partnered with The Forest Park Conservancy and Sellwood Park for the second year in a row to organize the Portland Backyard Collective, a day of stewardship in our member companies' very own backyard.
After all the hard work was complete, volunteers relaxed in the green grass of Wallace Park in Northwest Portland, enjoyed lunch from Elephant's Deli and talked with Conservation Alliance Grantees, WaterWatch, Save Our Wild Salmon and Oregon Wild about additional ways to support environmental efforts in their backyards.
Volunteers also received a Backyard Collective Tote Bag, Water Bottle and Merino Wool Tee, and other goodies thanks to the support of Icebreaker, Stanley, a brand of PMI, Patagonia, Osprey, and Merrell.
Be sure to check out the next Backyard Collective in Boulder on August 26th.