kids rock!
danza azteca coyoxauhqui at our open house event
cleaning the creek in our neighborhood
music, dance, and cleaning the creek in our neighborhood
We are building bridges across cultural, generational and economic divides within our own neighborhood focusing on:
| community service | ecological action |
| creative arts | skill building |
Our projects foster a sense of connection with the land and ecosystems where we live. We are also reducing our fossil fuel dependence (no cars needed for anything we do!), and building a vibrant, sustainable community. While we are based in the Junior College neighborhood of Santa Rosa, California, we are creating a replicable model for neighborhoods everywhere.
butterfly habitats!/habitat de la mariposa
We are supporting the proliferation of butterfly sanctuaries/habitats throughout the neighborhood and beyond. Starting this week, with support from Sunflowers for Santa Rosa and Seeds for Change, we will be giving out Mexican Sunflower seeds (Tithonia), as they are a favorite of the monarch butterfly. We are hoping to plant milkweed as well, as that is where they lay their eggs. We welcome collaboration with anyone with experience creating great habitats for butterflies.
Posted April 21, 2015
less herbicides, more flowers near creek!
All our efforts to be good stewards of the Poppy Creek Green Space, and to plant poppy flowers there, has led to a reduction in herbicide application in the area.
one of our first poppy seed sowers
Working with staff from the city’s creek stewardship, we have managed to get a landscaper at the property adjacent to where the Poppy Creek Green Space bulletin board is, to stop spraying. This came after a bunch of flowers we had planted at our fall gathering were poisoned and destroyed. New ones are now coming up, and a promise not to spray again was made.
Posted April 10, 2015
neighbors bring live music and culture to our original open house event
our neighbors from Ghana, Adua Kudoto and daughter, Sena lead drum circle
neighborhood kids of all ages play around on marimbas handmade by another neighbor
Posted January 8, 2015
scenes from our recent community celebration, ribbon cutting, Poppy seed sowing event
neighbors celebrate our new community bilingual bulletin board at a Harvest/Halloween party, and a neighborhood dog checks out our new “poo bag” receptacle attached to the new bulletin board.
Posted November 20, 2014
some of the kids who helped shape Growing a Village/Cultivando un Pueblo in the early days
Posted October 23, 2014
let’s get creative! kids, elders, todos los ninos!
All are welcome to join us at 3:30 pm on Tues, Oct. 28. We will gather under the walnut tree near the foot bridge at King and Carr st., and begin to decorate the area for our Halloween, Dia de los Muertos and ribbon cutting extravaganza 2 days later, on Oct. 30. Bring your creative ideas both for decorating and for the Thurs. event itself. Some have suggested making a Dia de los Muertos ofrenda (altar) to honor our beloved deceased pets. We will also be making unusual,natural decorations to spread out throughout the green space. Then on Thursday, we will have a costumed dance in our little parquecito, and celebrate the completion of our beautiful child-friendly bilingual community bulletin board, carved sign, dog-waste bag receptacle, as well as the on-going stewardship of Poppy Creek and the Poppy Creek Green space by an enthusiastic, multi-cultural, intergenerational crew of neighbors and friends. We will also have a mass sowing of poppy flower seeds. Join us!
Posted October 17, 2014
JCNA meeting rallies support for our neighborhood youth-inspired projects in the Poppy Creek Green Space!!
Below is part of a letter sent to the city Community Engagement Coordinator, in response to a request for more background, details, and maintenance plans for our projects. People are encouraged to write a simple letter in support of the Poppy Creek Green Space projects by writing to citycouncil@srcity.org or calling 543-3010
Posted April 14, 2014
What happened to our Poppy Creek Green Space bulletin board and carved sign?
It has been over a year since the kids and adults in our neighborhood first envisioned, designed and then built our community bulletin board and sign, designated for the green space at the walk-through at Carr and King streets. Despite support for this project from several city council members, as well as numerous dedicated city staff, we have not yet been allowed to install. This project was created to bring positive attention to a neglected and frequently trashed piece of city property, to build community, with a focus on empowering neighborhood youth, and to encourage stewardship of the surrounding land and creek. At this point, we are watching the original kids involved growing up as their project languishes….. and, as you can see, they are pissed!
Posted November 22, 2013
Award of Recognition from Santa Rosa City Parks and Recreation, plus CAB grants, and recent project
Growing a Village/Cultivando un Pueblo was acknowledged for our work stewarding the Poppy Creek Green Space and Creek at an award ceremony at Finley Center in August 2012. We also received 2 grants, two years in a row, to support our work, from The Community Advisory Board, the second of which went toward our Poppy Creek Green Space projects, of which some of the details are below:
A large group of adults and children from our neighborhood have designed a community bulletin board and sign, to be installed at the Poppy Creek Green Space, at the intersection of King and Carr. It’s purpose is to highlight and encourage environmental stewardship projects in the vicinity, community events, and children’s creativity, and is designed to stand at a height accessible to our youth. A collective of children and adults have committed to maintaining the board, and the city has promised to attach a receptacle for dog poo pick-up bags. We have also been cleaning the space and planting poppy flowers.