We want to thank EVERY ONE OF YOU who came out and volunteered this past weekend! What a beautiful day to work outside, meet new people, and be in community! As we hoped, this project was to reclaim Roosevelt Ravine, bringing it back to a state where the school and surrounding community could use and enjoy it.  Thank you for being a part of making that happen!  We had 52 volunteers show up through the day, surpassing our goal of 50.  We are very happy with the project! Click here to see a few pictures from the day.

We’d love to hear any feedback on how it could have been better organized at any level – registering, working, even playing!  We are also looking into how we can retain the services of “Chris’ mom” Donita G, in her nifty name tags…. we don’t know what your last name is, but who needs to when we know you as Rockin’ Ron, Racin’ Jason, or Erik the Sherpa!!  Thanks for your humor, “Chris’ mom!”

As future projects are planned to reclaim areas of need in the community, we hope you can join us again. We hope that we all continue to meet new people, and come together for the purpose of helping others.  Please stay tuned to reclaimingroots.org as plans are made for Project.2!

Thanks again for all you did!

Reclaiming Roots Team

On behalf of the Roosevelt students, families, and staff I would like to thank all of the volunteers and supporters of the Roosevelt Ravine project. This was a huge undertaking and it is wonderful to see the ravine look so great!

From the organization of the various projects, peoples’ cheerful attitudes and willingness to work hard, and the good food all made this a worthwhile day. Many caring people made a big job “do-able!” Our neighbors and students will enjoy these efforts for years to come!

We hope you can visit our Ravine soon!

Mindy Paulsen, Principal

It’s finally here. The preparation has been done, and the ravine is ready. This post will hopefully include all the information you will need as you make your preparations to come and help.

Directions: Roosevelt Elementary’s address is 611 Greenwood Dr. in Iowa City; however, we will be meeting and parking in the south parking lot.
(From Iowa City) As you go west on Benton Street, the school is on the west side of Riverside Drive. You will pass Hudson Avenue and Miller Avenue on your left, and soon after, Roosevelt Elementary will be on your right. If you’ve reached the top of the hill, then you’ve gone too far. The school is just before that.
(From Coralville or I-80) Take exit #242 (1st Ave.) and go south on 1st Ave. Follow 1st Ave. from Coralville to Melrose Ave. Take a left, or go east on Melrose Ave. Take a right at the next stoplight, going south on Sunset St. Go to the next stoplight, which is Benton St., and take a left going east. Go just under a mile, and on your left will be the school parking lot. If you’ve reached the bottom of the hill, you’ve gone too far.

Parking and registration will be in the south parking lot. If you have to park on the north side, please walk to the south parking lot to meet for registration. Registration and breakfast will take place from 7:00 - 8:00ish. The earlier we are able to start working, the better. Please come and check in at the table and let us know if there are any activities you would prefer not to do. Don’t forget — Cafe Del Sol Roasting and House of Aromas Coffeehouse have donated breakfast. Come and enjoy pastries, rolls, muffins, and freshly roasted coffee!

What to wear: I suggest work boots or a pair of something you don’t care to wear again. It may be a bit muddy, and some of the trail is a bit out of whack. Long pants or long socks. Although we have sprayed for poison ivy, there may be some lingering on parts of the trail, so something to protect your lower legs would be ideal. Gloves and long sleeves would be good for some jobs too. It could get hot; however, it may be chilly in the morning. Tomorrow’s forecast is partly cloudy with a 30% chance of rain in the early afternoon with a high of 86. If you wake up and it’s raining, you make the call. We will be out there — rain or shine.

Please don’t forget to bring the tools you mentioned when registering. We are bringing what we can, but a lot of it is coming from you. Also, if you are having scheduling conflicts with this and another event, please come for any part of the day. We will need everyone to make this happen.&nb sp; And if you can bring a friend who isn’t registered, DO IT! The more the merrier! If it’s Saturday morning and you get lost, have questions, whatever, call Chris at (319)325-4344. Also, if you have any shrubs or plants that you are looking to get rid of, please feel free to bring those with you. We will find a good home for them in the ravine.

Lastly, we would like to mention and thank our sponsors for their help. Cafe Del Sol Roasting, House of Aromas Coffeehouse, Hy-Vee, Country Landscapes, Inc., Panchero’s Mexican Grill, Johnson County Refuse, Infinity Skin Care & Spa, and University of Iowa Community Credit Union. With their help in this event, we are able to accomplish much more. Please thank these businesses for their support.

And THANK YOU for signing up! As of this morning, we have 44 volunteers!! We couldn’t be happier about that. Thank you so much, and we look forward to getting dirty with you tomorrow!

It’s been almost one month since we launched {reclaiming roots} and we are very happy with the response so far. Many people are asking questions about who we are and what we are about. It’s great to be able to see people jive with our vision for community.

We wanted to give everyone an update on how things are lining up for Project.1 at Roosevelt Ravine. First, we want to thank all of you who have signed up to volunteer so far. We are currently aiming at 50 and so far we have 19. We are very happy about that. If you are interested in registering for this event click here. We need all the help we can get!

Second, we want to celebrate sponsors that have joined us so far: House of Aromas Coffeehouse, Café del Sol Roasting, Hy-Vee, and Johnson County Refuse. We will hopefully have a few more coming on board in the next few days so keep checking our Project Sponsors page for updates on local support (If you are interested in sponsoring a part of this project, please email Luke at luke@reclaimingroots.org).

If this is your first time to the site, we encourage you to scroll down to read what has been going on and what we have planned for this project.

Last night we did another walk through the ravine to talk through some of our plans. There is plenty of work to be done on the trail and around the path. Here are a few pictures of our walk through:

To see a few more photos, click here.

Click here to go to our registration page!

On Saturday, July 14, we will be reclaiming Roosevelt Ravine back to beauty. This ravine is enjoyed by the hundreds of elementary students at Roosevelt Elementary School, as well as residents of the local community. After several years of little up-keep, there is work to do in bringing it back to life. We will be working on the trails, bridges, decks, as well as planting and transplanting throughout the ravine.

We plan to jump into this project at 7:30am, and hope to have effectively restored beauty by the afternoon. Delicious coffee roasted and supplied by Café del Sol with pastries provided by House of Aromas Coffeehouse will be served to jump-start us all, and lunch will be taken care of as well. Please register as soon as possible, to help us plan accordingly. If you have any of the basic lawn tools listed, please note them in the registration form or contact us and just let us borrow your tools for the day. Email us at chris@reclaimingroots.org with any questions, and thank you for joining us!

TOOLS NEEDED:

Wheelbarrows (5) (4) (3) (2)

Shovels

Chainsaws (2) (1)

Rakes

Hoes

Gloves

Power Sprayer (1)

Weed Eater (3) (2) (1)

Bug Spray

Sunscreen (a bunch)

DONATIONS NEEDED:

Rock for trail

Railroad Ties

Tree Trimming Services

If you have any ideas, concerns, questions or comments, please feel free to email us at chris@reclaimingroots.org

or comment to this or any of our posts.

We are hoping to have at least 50 people come out.

Total Registrants: 44

PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES AND MORE INFORMATION AS WE GET CLOSER TO OUR PROJECT DATE