Nancy Blankinship and Mike Hedley gave of their time to help improve their Springs neighborhood by working with other residents to plant drought-tolerant shrubs along Mountain Avenue.
Submitted Photo
Here’s an idea for a New Year’s resolution that doesn’t involve weight loss or exercise: How about doing something simple to make your neighborhood a little better place?
For a little inspiration, look no further than these examples of some Springs residents who are quietly doing good in all sorts of ways.
Every few months, Walt Panus cuts back the overgrown vegetation from the stop sign and street sign on Myrtle Avenue and Boyes Boulevard. While some might say, “It’s not my job,” Panus figured the hidden stop sign was an accident waiting to happen, and the hidden street sign made navigation harder for UPS trucks – not to mention emergency vehicles.
Another community-minded clipper is Timoteo Rojas Silva, who often carries a vineyard pruning knife in his pocket. When he sees branches or weeds overhanging the sidewalk, as he did a couple of weeks ago on the Boyes Boulevard bridge, he prunes them back, clearing the way for pedestrians and strollers.
A woman on Railroad Avenue who prefers that her name not be used has taken on the task of notifying PG&E when her neighborhood streetlights burn out. This is more complicated than it sounds; she needs to identify the pole numbers and brave the PG&E phone system. Fortunately, she’s persistent.
Suzanne Morten and Placido Vega make a point to pick up trash in their Myrtle Avenue neighborhood. Likewise, the Santoyo family picks up the area around the Charter School on the weekends. And every three months, 20 to 25 employees of the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn volunteer to pick up trash in the block surrounding the inn.
One man who lives in The Springs and prefers not to be identified was advised by his doctor to keep active to help his arthritis. He wanted to do something good while exercising, so he mows lawns, rakes leaves and cleans gutters for neighbors who can’t do it for themselves.
Tillie Angus of Sonoma Yarn on Highway 12 and Lichtenberg Avenue coordinates volunteers who knit six-inch squares, which she crochets together into quilts for the Valley of the Moon Children’s Home. Call 707.996.9276 if you want to help.
A professional painter, who prefers to keep a low profile, paints out graffiti when he sees it. And the members of the Valley of the Moon Teen Center provide a graffiti clean-up service to anyone who calls them at 707.939.1452.
Residents of the unpaved street off Bay Street next to the El Verano post office are grateful to their two neighbors who filled in the potholes.
Friends and neighbors tidied up the triangle of land at the junction of Mountain Avenue and Highway 12. Mike Hedley, Nancy Blankinship, B.J. Droubi, Dan Gallagher, Ron Moser, Ellen Conlan, Jose Luciano and Mountain Avenue neighbors pitched in to plant roses, agaves and other drought-tolerant shrubs. Hedley weeds and waters from time to time, and says he gets lots of appreciative waves from passing drivers.
Refugio (last name unknown) lives near the Charter School. He misses his own children in Mexico, he told director Nora Flood, so asked to help out at the school. This spring, he’ll help them build a maintenance shed.
Alicia Robledo of Agua Caliente throws a big party for neighborhood children on Three Kings Day, January 6. Last year, 80 kids showed up, so this year she’s moving the party to a larger venue near the Plaza. Although Robledo’s own kids are grown, she wanted to share the spirit of the traditional holiday from her native Michoacan with children in the local community. She has childhood memories of leaving her shoes outside for the three wise men to fill with gifts on Jan. 6. Now Robledo provides the gifts for all the children who attend her party. Call 707.939.2589 for an invitation.
This is just scratching the surface of the ways in which Springs residents are helping out their neighborhoods, but – who knows? – maybe it will spark an idea or two for a New Year’s resolution of your own. Whether you take a “do-it-yourself” approach or a more traditional volunteer position with any of the deserving schools or non-profits in The Springs, it’s a good way to start the new year. And it sure beats dieting.
