Time to Vote for Your Charitable Project Choice

Warrensville Road Community Baptist Church Project
Cleveland Pollinator and Native Plants

Cleveland Pollinators and Native Plants Organization educates anyone eager to learn about creating pollinator and wildlife habitats, using native plants and trees to promote biodiversity and ecological resilience. Within this organization, Ann Cicarella provides pro bono landscape design, plant selection and organized plantings for various projects. One such project brought to our attention is the transformation of the Warrensville Road Community Baptist Church grounds. The church is located off the 480 entrance and exit where hundreds of cars pass by every day. Deacon Ron Owens envisions transforming the grounds into a haven for pollinators and wildlife for the church community and the community at large, hence creating an example for similar corridors to copy. Partial funding has been secured from the National Wildlife Federation. The Shaker Lakes Garden Club is being asked to contribute $5,000 to aid in the renovation and enlarging of three existing beds that surround the church and to plant small native trees, shrubs, forbs and grasses in these beds to create a biodiverse landscape. The overarching goal is to promote biodiversity as an essential component of urban infrastructure, demonstrating the vital role played in creating resilient ecosystems with highly visible plantings and inspiring the many passersby and nearby residents to do likewise.

Woodland Cemetery Foundation

The Woodland Cemetery Foundation (WCF) is seeking funding for Engage with Nature. With over 60 acres and 87,000 residents, this is an inner-city cemetery waiting for engagement with nature as permanent beautification projects create beds using native plants to attract pollinators and serve as a long-term place for educational programs for children and adults through history tours, events, and birdwatching tours.

Two beds will be installed on the interior area surrounding the newly-restored gatehouse. The bed on the right will be dedicated to the 3 Bs: birds, bees and butterflies. This bed will emphasize native species, which are hardy and deer resistant while attracting pollinators and providing berries and seeds for the birds. There will be a permanent educational sign with information about native gardens and the ecosystems supported by the plantings. This site will also become the starting point for the Underground Railroad tours given by WCF.

The bed to the left will be dedicated to the Civil War veterans. Woodland Cemetery has the most veterans of the Civil War for a non-military cemetery in Ohio. WCF also has the only monument dedicated to the United States Colored Troops who served in the Civil War and are buried in Woodland Cemetery. The color theme will be red and white: red for the blood they shed and white for their service/spirituality. This garden includes native plants along with non-native plants that can add to the color combination, and will be the starting place for the tours WCF gives on the Civil War notables in the cemetery.

Hough Community Green Space
Proposal from the Western Reserve Land Conservancy

A significant focus of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s mission includes connecting urban residents to nature and restoring the Forest City’s tree canopy, which has dwindled to a critical low point. To this end, the $1.6 million Hough Community Green Space Project will transform the now vacant site of the former John W. Raper School into a neighborhood park with walking paths, benches, and gathering spaces planted with trees for shade and a variety of native plants.

A collaborative planning process involved local organizations and residents of the surrounding area, ensuring that the finished project will fill the needs of the neighborhood and appeal to the residents of the Hough community. Funding for this major undertaking has been secured from multiple sources, led by the City of Cleveland, with major contributions from corporate foundations and conservation groups. The Shaker Lakes Garden Club is being asked to join this group of contributors to help realize the vision with $5,000 directed toward the purchase of “robust-sized trees.” The Land Conservancy will provide ongoing project management, construction oversight, public and private fundraising support and tree maintenance. Ownership will ultimately be transferred to the City of Cleveland.

Call with any questions, and VOTE! 
Either by email or phone…..
Barb Horrigan bmaniscalo@yahoo.com, 216-905-0101
Jane Ellison, jane.slgc@gmail.com, 216-371-5123