National Make A Difference Day in Lydgate Park

The frequent application of non-toxic linseed oil wood sealer to the play structures in Lydgate Park assures that they remain in good condition. Jaira Robia and her friend Jessica had fun volunteering on a recent community workday at Lydgate Park.

You are invited to join the Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park in celebrating National Make A Difference Day in Lydgate Park. Save Saturday morning, Oct. 25 to participate locally in this nationwide day of volunteerism.

This is a major community workday featuring free lunch. Annually, over the past nine years, hundreds of Kaua‘i residents and visitors have helped to spruce up Lydgate Park on Make A Difference Day.

This year, volunteers are asked to sign-in at 7:30 a.m. in the Main Pavilion at Lydgate Park, and to bring their own reusable water bottle to minimize plastic waste.

The Friends will serve chilled drinking water throughout the workday and then provide lunch to the volunteers. Full details including a registration form for this volunteer workday are at www.kamalani.org.

A clean and attractive park is a source of pride for all of us. The Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park coordinate events enabling us to work together, making our island’s most frequently visited beach park pleasant and refreshing for park users of all ages and abilities. People who help on Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park workdays are building connectedness within our community — and that is very gratifying.

The scope of work this year includes applying non-toxic linseed oil sealer to the Kamalani Playground, beach grooming, Malama Hikina‘akala and Hauola Heiau, developing an inventory of the trees in the park, and park beautification.

Volunteers should wear work clothes, sun protection, and closed toe shoes. Ladders 6 feet or taller will be very helpful in applying sealer to the Kamalani Playground. Contact the operations section chief at 639-1018 or news@Kaua‘ipath.org if you can loan a ladder for the workday.

The Kamalani Playground deserves conscientious maintenance and care so that future generations will enjoy this unique community-built and maintained attraction. Coordinating community workdays that sustain the long-term maintenance effort is an ongoing responsibility that the Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park embrace.

Tommy Noyes

With the help of our volunteers, the Friends are developing an urban forestry management plan. The first step is to systematically inventory the existing individual trees in the park. The group will use the inventory to schedule planting suitable young trees that will grow and eventually replace the aging trees.

This event is made possible through support from the County of Kaua‘i, Department of Parks and Recreation; Castle Resorts and Hotels and the Kaha Lani Association of Apartment Owners; Mark’s Place; Home Depot in the Community; Starbucks Coffee; the Y’s Men; the YWCA of Kaua‘i; Kapa‘a Rotary; and contributions from many other businesses, organizations, and you — the many Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park.

Plan to join your friends in Lydgate Park on Saturday, Oct. 25. Call 639-1018 or email ThomasNoyes@hawaiiantel.net, and I’d be happy to address your questions, comments, and inquiries regarding volunteer group arrangements.

• Tommy Noyes works for the Hawai‘i State Department of Health’s Public Health Preparedness branch, serves on Kaua‘i Path’s board of directors, and is a League of American Bicyclists certified instructor.