CATCHING UP
CatRock Students Practice Environmental Stewardship: Caring for Bronx Parks and Green Spaces
CatRock’s transformative outdoor experiences include community service projects that enable the students to practice environmental stewardship while fostering their development as socially responsible leaders. During the pandemic, CatRock youth have focused on improving their local Bronx community through park and garden stewardship projects that could be completed following safety protocols like wearing masks and social distancing.
“Stewardship of green spaces in the Kingsbridge neighborhood of the Bronx is a core aspect of the CatRock Youth Leadership Academy,” explains Craig Meisner, executive director and co-founder of the nonprofit. “This work enables us to advance our mission of building environmental stewardship skills among our students.”
Through a partnership with Jerome Park Friends and Neighbors, a community organization, CatRock students have historically worked with other volunteers to help manage park spaces around the Jerome Park Reservoir, including Washington Walk Park and Fort Independence Park. These green spaces located near the CatRock Lodge are gathering spaces for CatRock students, neighborhood residents, and visitors.
“Park space maintenance and beautification projects build local community pride and promote safer communities through crime reduction,” continues Craig.
The early part of the pandemic severely impacted CatRock’s ability to get the kids outdoors. Instead, Craig and his volunteer leaders kept the students engaged through virtual programming and in-home gardening projects. By late spring, the students were eager to get out into the Bronx’s green spaces. Because the pandemic also seriously undermined the ability of Jerome Park and Friends to attract volunteers, the CatRock team collaborated even more extensively with this neighborhood organization on stewardship projects.
The CatRock students thus played an extraordinarily important role in helping to beautify and maintain the areas around Jerome Park Reservoir this past year. Over the summer, CatRock students took part in stewardship activities that included weeding, removing invasive plants, planting native species (butterfly weed, Virginia rose, phlox, and yellow tail), litter clean up, mulching, bulb planting, and tree bed restoration. The CatRock students planted over 500 bulbs which will bloom into gorgeous daffodils and crocuses this spring thanks to support from the Partnership for Parks, the City Parks Foundation, and Jerome Park Friends and Neighbors. This year, the students will work in the parks on a weekly basis and hold monthly events such as garbage pickups, weeding, mulching, and planting.
CatRock students also improved the streetscape outside the CatRock Lodge and P.S./M.S. 315 The Lab School for Children by restoring the tree beds last year. The team cleaned up the beds, removed old plants, weeded, mulched, planted new species, and installed new decorative fencing. Neighbors came by in tears to say thank you and remarked that Claflin Avenue hadn’t looked that good in years. “There were a lot of reactions. We were cleaning sometimes and somebody would actually come up to thank us for cleaning the community,” says Michael C.
The students derive multiple benefits from participating in these park stewardship projects. “It was a lot of hard work, but I like the fact that I would be able to turn around and see the hard work,” reports Michael. “We would see a bunch of weeds and by the end of the day, there weren’t any more.”
Adds Cristian A: “It makes me feel good. I like to help people. Every day is a new day and I try be a better person every day.”
The student also gain invaluable new skills. “This wasn’t a solo project. It was a group effort,” remarks Kevin T. “I’ve learned teamwork, communication, and time management skills.”
The CatRock students also recognize the positive impact their park projects make on their community. “It changes people’s behavior when the park is better,” explains Cristian. “It helps the neighborhood and the community. It helps people look on the bright side and decreases problems and conflicts. It’s similar to keeping the lights on when it’s dark: it decreases crime rates.”
Kevin agrees: “Our works shows we care. People noticed what we were doing and appreciated it. They also started changing their behavior, using the trash cans, and sharing that message with others.”
Most importantly, CatRock students are learning to become community leaders and sustainability advocates and understand that they are part of a larger community. “It’s not just our job to keep the community clean. We might be the ones working on it, but we should all put in the effort to keep our community safe because at the end of the day, this is where we live,” remarks Michael. “This is most likely where our children are going to live. So why not keep it cleaner?”
As Kevin says, “The park represents the community. If it’s clean, people will care. It brings people together so keeping it clean is good.”