Instead I was greeted by a virtually unrecognizable bonanza of plants, perennials thriving and the trees as green as could be.
Cohen Companies graciously donated the parcel at L & Half Streets SE for the past year for this garden project, knowing that activating the site with greenery was better for both the neighborhood and the environment than leaving it as an empty lot while they waited for the opportunity to build. Unfortunately for the garden, that opportunity has come, and it is time for us to pick up and move.
Fortunately we are able to work with our friends at the Anacostia Watershed Society to quickly find a new location. The City of Hyattsville is welcoming our 16 trees with open arms, and provided a site at Magruder Park, along the Northwest Branch of the Anacostia River, as a new, permanent home.
And thus this weekend we will install the (permanent) David Stemper Memorial Grove. It will be located alongside a wetland restoration project that AWS is constructing, and provide a shady place for reflection and respite in a busy city park. Not to speak for his wife Gloria, but I think it is a wonderfully fitting tribute to David.
We need more than a dozen volunteers to pull this off in one day, and it will be warm and strenuous. But we need to move quickly as construction on the original site could start as soon as next week.
For more information about the work day, and to sign up, please visit AWS's website.
And thank you for your help and support for the past year. We hope you enjoyed the temporary display!
