My name is Jenny and I am an enthusiast of several things: the environment, recycling, the outdoors, local events, transportation, art, trees, reading, being active, gardening, and more here in Atlanta and Decatur, Georgia. Which is what this site is about. Enjoy!
The Atlanta BeltLine is charging full force into 2010 with a Volunteer Kick-Off Happy Hour on March 18th, 2010 at Park Tavern on Piedmont Park! To welcome the spring, the 2010 festival season, and the BeltLine’s great accomplishments this year, we would like to gather our current, future, and potential volunteers for this social event! As the BeltLine project continues to advance rapidly, we want to keep everyone up-to-date with the latest news and developments so you feel prepared to volunteer this coming year. Come out and socialize with fellow volunteers, enjoy a drink or two, review the latest BeltLine 101 presentation, and learn about all of the ways you can get involved with the Atlanta BeltLine! And feel free to stick around for a local dinner at our fantastic BeltLine supporter, Park Tavern.
Where: Park Tavern on Piedmont Park at the corner of Monroe and 10th Street in Midtown
Busy summer schedule? Not sure if you’ll have time to volunteer? We still encourage you to come out anyway so you’re trained and prepared to volunteer whenever it’s convenient for you.
Please feel free to bring your friends, family, colleagues, and anyone else who might be interested in learning more about the BeltLine and our volunteer program. You don’t have to have volunteered previously to attend and, of course, you’re under no obligation to volunteer by attending.
As always, a HUGE thanks to all of you who make it possible for the BeltLine booth to appear at over 15 festivals each year and spread the word about the future of Atlanta’s transportation! We look forward to seeing every one of you out at a festival this coming spring, summer, and fall!
You don’t have to take our word for it – check out this BeltLine volunteer video! (and yes, that’s me in there talking about our stellar volunteers!)
Previously, I wrote about Keep Atlanta Beautiful’s Race 2 Recycle coming up in Piedmont Park next weekend (Nov. 14th, 09) and I wanted to post this update (courtesy of KAB):
Keep Atlanta Beautiful is looking for 20 volunteers to help out at the Race 2 Recycle on Saturday, November 14. Volunteers are needed to help with set-up, registration, timing on the finish line and passing out water to runners. All volunteers will receive a free organic cotton race t-shirt and are encouraged to dress in a recycled-themed costume. What a great way to celebrate America Recycles Day!
In celebration of America Recycles Day, Keep Atlanta Beautiful is setting the pace for zero waste with the 3rd annual Race 2 Recycle. Make an impact by rallying your club, co-workers, family and friends to run the 5k or 1 mile fun run, around beautiful Piedmont Park in Midtown Atlanta on Saturday, November 14. Race starts at 8:30 a.m. Register online at www.KeepAtlantaBeautiful.org.
Runners will be joining teams from IKEA, Republic Services, Novelis, Mohawk, Wal-Mart and more! >>Learn more
Mark your calendars and head to Piedmont Park on Saturday, November 14th, 2009 for Atlanta’s 3rd Annual Race 2 Recycle presented by Keep Atlanta Beautiful! Enjoy the outdoors and the sights and sounds of Midtown Atlanta in this 5k and 1 mile fun run around beautiful Piedmont Park in Midtown Atlanta. Emcee Jovita Moore from WSB-TV will join Honorary Chairs, Councilmember Clair Muller and Jack Perko, Area President for Republic Services, Inc. to present awards at a special ceremony after the race.
Don’t want to run solo? Get a group of people together and form a team! In the upcoming weeks, Keep Atlanta Beautiful will be recruiting teams to join in the fun. In 2008, more than 300 people participated including teams from IKEA Atlanta and Turner Broadcasting, Inc. For 2009, Keep Atlanta Beautiful has added convenient online registration for individuals and teams. For more information on the race and to find out more about sponsoring a team, visit www.KeepAtlantaBeautiful.org.
Thanks to everyone who came out last Saturday for the Atlanta BeltLine’s Earth Day clean-up put on by Keep Atlanta Beautiful!! Group 4 did an incredible job of clearing out underbrush and trash along the BeltLine tracks from Lake Avenue (near Studioplex Lofts) south to Edgewood! Check out the map here of the area our group cleared! I pinpointed Studioplex, so just go east a bit to where the railroad tracks cross Lake Avenue. Kevin Cregan (of Kudzu Studios, who does all the printing and merchandise for the BeltLine) and I were team leaders together for group 4, which cleaned and cleared from Lake Avenue on to to where group 5 started at the Edgewood bridge. Group 5 cleared kudzu off of a very long length of fence that runs from the Edgewood bridge to the DeKalb Avenue bridge. To the north of us, volunteers stretched all the way to Freedom Parkway! Another team leader, Brad, brought his group down and merged with ours to form a very long stretch of people clearing brush and trash.
Overall, the BeltLine clean-up had over 200 people registered at 8 a.m. and had dozens more show up to help out. When we first gave our group the overview of the ambitious projects for the morning, I don’t think anyone had any idea how much we would accomplish. Our volunteers were amazing! We even had a girl walk up the tracks halfway through the morning and said she’d read about it and asked how she could help. And my Dad was out in full force (as he usually is to help out with volunteer events) and I eventually had to coax him to put down the pruning shears and come eat.
The goal of this clean-up was to make the BeltLine tracks more walkable for people to check out and envision the greener future of Atlanta transportation. This clean-up came on the heels of a major effort last fall to clean up from Freedom Park to Piedmont Park, so now the tracks and trail are visible from DeKalb Avenue and Inman Park all the way up to Piedmont Park in Midtown. You should definitely check it out! And come out to volunteer with the Atlanta BeltLine anytime by clicking here! We’re still in need of volunteers to help with the BeltLine booth for the Sweet Auburn Festival, Go Green Get Rewards Festival, and Virginia Highland Summerfest in the next six weeks!
BeltLine progress! The photos on the left are looking south down the BeltLine from Lake to Edgewood, showing the growth over the second track, our group cutting and sawing, and me sitting on the tracks at the end. The right side shows another team cleaning kudzu off of the fence between Edgewood and DeKalb Avenue; cleaning up the bridge under Edgewood; and Gerard, Zack, Angel, and me hanging out at the after party (and Dad stopped for a minute to take this photo of us).
Bill Goodman made a short video here on the negative impact that Amtrak’s high speed rail could have on the residences, business, and quality of life in our Atlanta neighborhood of Inman Park. Please check it out here!
More of our intown neighborhoods would be deeply affected, too (Virginia Highland, Poncey-Highland, Morningside, Piedmont Heights and Piedmont Park, Ansley Park, etc.). If you have the opportunity to volunteer to make a similar video or come across one that is already posted, please let me know and I will put it up on here!
For more BeltLine info, please check out my “Atlanta BeltLine” category on the righthand side of the page!
