By Georgia Lawrence
Who: Aramark and Grace Hill Settlement House
Volunteers: 90
What: Peace Park
Where: St. Louis, MO
When: August 15th – 20th
TCF: Florence Capinding, Emily Kean, Aundrea Dean, Georgia Lawrence, Dylan Morrill and Phillip St. Clair
We arrived in St. Louis on Sunday, August 15th and traveled to the College Hill Neighborhood, in the north section of the city, first thing Monday morning. The area has a high incidence of violent crimes and many vacant properties. In the midst of this, however, sits Peace Park, a refuge for residents seeking a safe place to gather within the community. The Grace Hill Settlement House, an organization started in 1903 to assist recent immigrants in their economic and social transition into America, is overseeing the revitalization of the park as part of a larger effort to renew the community. Grace Hill Settlement House works throughout St. Louis in two capacities: The Grace Hill Settlement House and the Grace Hill Neighborhood Health Centers. Grace Hill is an economic engine in St. Louis, collectively raising an excess of 50 million dollars, providing valuable services to the community, and employing over 540 people. In addition to their work at Peace Park, Grace Hill has also recently opened a brand new health center in the College Hill Neighborhood.
In order to preserve Peace Park as a beacon of hope for the community, Team Care Force and the 90 volunteers from Aramark were responsible for kicking off Phase 1of a three phase revitalization project. The projects included: building twelve planter beds to be used for flowers, fruits and vegetables; constructing fourteen benches placed around the park; landscaping a large section of the park by clearing underbrush and laying mulch around existing trees; staining the new giving structure where donations can be dropped off, and laying a tile mosaic down the center of a 30ft long cement table.
We had a great three days of prep work, mostly involving measuring and cutting wood and cleaning and cutting tiles. On Tuesday night, we had a delicious dinner out with the folks from Grace Hill, which included a celebrity sighting! Shaquille O’Neal came over to our table and thanked us for the great work that we were doing in St. Louis. Okay, just kidding, he didn’t talk to us, but we DID see him sitting at a nearby table at the restaurant.
On the day of the event, Aramark and Team Care Force worked very hard despite the excessive heat to finish every project and make the day a great success! Our closing ceremony included the unveiling of a brand new sign at the corner of the park that included a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. that reads “At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.” It is a great reminder to all of us and the surrounding community that bringing people together through service can bring about transformational change and can generate love and peace in the face of adversity.
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