A huge thank you to everyone who joined in DIA’s fourth annual Dimond Shine Day on March 23rd. We had amazing, sunny weather and judging from the number of volunteers, the accomplishments, and the smiling (if tired) faces, it was a great success for the community.
The numbers are in! The day’s participants totaled 143 (more than last year!), including many families and people of all ages. Together this is what we did:
- Collected 30 bags of litter
- Collected 50 bags of green waste
- Removed graffiti, tags, and stickers from about 75 locations
- Weeded and mulched 46 tree wells
- Cleaned 20 mosaics
- Weeded and mulched the Gateway Garden, the Bienati Parking Lot, and the Bienati Overlook
- Cleaned and painted two sections of fence in the Bienati Parking Lot
- Repaired and painted information kiosks at Champion Transit Plaza and Farmer Joe’s Fruitvale entrance
- Touched up St. Louis Veterinary Clinic’s postcard mural to fix graffiti, removed graffiti from the windows, and repaired a damaged portion of the sign
- Touched up copper paint on 8 large planters
And, in the days before and after the event, paid crews weeded the Champion Plaza and power washed 6 blocks of sidewalks in the commercial district
Big thank-yous go to Giant Burgers, which hosted operational center of the event, and to Dimond Slice, Farmer Joes, Grand Lake Kitchen, and La Farine for providing the morning and afternoon refreshments.
Check out photos from the day (official photography by John W. Ellis IV)!
Even if you missed the big event, you don’t need to miss out on the satisfaction and community camaraderie of hands-on work for the Dimond. Occasional and regular opportunities abound: Litter walks every Wednesday and Saturday, graffiti removal most Saturdays, tree well “adoption” for maintenance, a work party at Bienati Overlook the first Sunday of every month (9-11am), and lots of other one-off or ongoing activities. Email dia@dimondnews.org and tell us your interest–we’ll find a perfect fit!