It had nothing to do with turkey, tofurkey, ham, stuffing, or casserole madness. In fact, our evening of giving thanks was before the big holiday. On Thursday, November 13, the Grand Canyon Trust held it's annual post season Volunteer Thank You Party Homestead Hoedown where almost 50 community members gathered to celebrate a successful year of restoration and conservation efforts across the Colorado Plateau.
The Trust may not have smelled like green beans and mashed potatoes, but we sure did eat. Thank you to Travis for making his grandfather's famous jumbo gumbo and Kate for her hot and spicy veggie posole. Steve went mad with desert platters and turned fruits and brownies into works of art. Let's not forget about some guest surprises. Emily and Brittany fascinated our taste buds with some homemade cookies that could make a dessert cactus drool and Rand, from the Green Room generously kept the party going with a donated keg of Amber. http://www.flagstaffgreenroom.com/
Our volunteers were celebrated graciously. In 2008, they logged over 14,000 hours of their time out in the field with us working on projects from weathering our buildings to raking over 200 lbs of native seed into the west side of the Kaibab Plateau. Our volunteers are the backbone of our organization and we are most appreciative of each one of them. But, they are not the only ones giving to the community.
An enthusiastic and special thanks to the local businesses that enabled us to give away prices via a free raffle at the event. Listed below are those that generously donated gifts to the GCT enabling us to reward the tireless efforts of our dedicated volunteer community. For those of you who brought goods for St. Mary's Food Bank, thank you, too. We were able to contribute 4 large bags to them!
*The Museum of Northern Arizona, The Green Room, The Arboretum, Northern AZ Yoga Center, Riordan Mansion State Park, Vertical Relief, Yoga Experience, Peace Surplus, Winter Sun, Mountain Sports, and Absolute Bikes-thank you thank you thank you!*
Lastly, thank you to Dave McGraw and Ryan Heinsus for donating their time and unbelievable talents filling the room with folk, country, and all around great music. Their energy lit up the event and spread joy throughout the evening. I have a hunch it is not the last we will hear of them! http://www.davemcgraw.net/
May your holidays be warm and filled with community. Enjoy and see you all soon!
Sincerely,
Lauren Berutich and the Volunteer Program
