Making a Difference
A big thank you to everyone who made this year’s Skiles Test Nature Park cleanup a success.
Cleaning up a nature park is not for the fainthearted. This year more than 50 hard-working volunteers were up for the task, and our favorite nature park has never looked better!
This amazing crew of park supporters brought the entrance and alcove areas back to life. They replaced broken rails on the wooden fence, freed sections of trail 2 from wire fencing, picked up Test-era remnants along parts of trail 3 and uncovered an old steel drum that took four volunteers to hoist into the bed of a pickup truck. Stacks of honeysuckle and bags of garlic mustard, litter and other debris ended up in the dumpster. Volunteers removed graffiti from the trashcan and added river rock to weeded landscaping beds.
On the north end of the park, some serious culvert clearing work took place. Over the years, the culvert that carries water under the park’s paved trail became plugged and the embankment on the west side of the trail became unstable. During the cleanup, a crew unplugged the eastside channel and stabilized the west bank with layers of large stones. An intense workout indeed!
Donors and partner organizations also played an important role in the day’s success. Many thanks to Demolition Den, Fire and Ice Café, Scoop Shack Ice Cream Shop, and Starbucks for providing coffee, water, food and snacks and to our cleanup partner Binford Redevelopment and Growth (BRAG) whose behind-the-scenes prep-work and board member involvement once again demonstrated their commitment to the beautification of our parks and neighborhoods.
A special shout out to Allie Combs, STNP manager, who was there at every turn with loads of supplies and assistance and to Indy Parks & Recreation for printing yard signs and promotional flyers. Lastly, all that debris had to go somewhere. Through the coordinated efforts of Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and the Indianapolis Department of Public Works, a mega dumpster with a no cost drop-off and pick-up service was provided.
Cleaning up an 81-acre nature park isn’t easy, but thanks to the generosity and can-do spirit of an awesome team of volunteers and the support of donor and partner organizations and local businesses, it was a lot more enjoyable. Thank you for making a difference!
