2018 Gemenskap Park Grand Opening
Last Saturday, October 27th, the sun came out to bless the dedication of the first phase of Gemenskap Park. The Ballard High School band and project stalwart Peter Locke, lead a parade around the park with local neighbors and children in costume. The festivities continued with presentations by Peter, Interim Parks Superintendent Christopher Williams and former Groundswell President Dawn Hemminger. The latter two held the ends of the ribbon while Peter wielded the giant scissors. Warmest congratulations to Dawn Hemminger who stuck with this project from it’s inception over 10 years ago!
Gemenskap Park fills a gap identified in Groundswell’s 1996 open space inventory and represents what we hope is the first “blossoming” of a seed planted in our 1997 North Salmon Bay Community Forest Plan, which called for greening 14th Ave NW. The East Ballard Community Association, with Dawn and Peter in the lead, took that idea and created a bold vision of park blocks all the way from Ballard High to Salmon Bay. Kudos on completing these first two blocks!
The good vibe continued during the grand opening when Groundswell NW was presented with a check for $8,000 from the Fremont Neighborhood Fund, a small non-profit whose missions was making grants to improve the quality of life in our community. FNF has decided to dissolve and distribute its remaining assets to other similar non-profit groups. Susanne Daniell, Dave Boyd and Dawn Hemminger accepted the check on behalf of Groundswell, and we all thank FNF for their generosity!
Do you want to be a part of our energetic community with a mission to grow green spaces in NW Seattle? Groundswell NW is looking for a part-time bookkeeper, with an estimated started date of January 2019. Application information can be found on our website, with resume submissions due by November 5th.
On a more somber note, we would like to recognize the contributions of two community members who helped make NW Seattle a greener place and have left us far too soon. Bruce Hale was one of the forces behind ReTree Ballard’s efforts to plant over 2,000 new trees in Ballard, improvements to the Salmon Bay Park play area and creation of the Salmon Bay School Playfield. Barbara Hainley was one of the volunteers who lead the community efforts to design and build Kirke Park. Both will be missed, but their contributions are lasting.
Groundswell NW Board