Wow. An out-of-this-world work party!

The two-day work party (with work done off and on during the week and a half before) was a resounding success! And then there was the party on Sunday!

Many, many thanks to all the volunteers who helped us get our beautiful gazebo ready for the dedication, with special thanks to Hans Mölders and Joe Geiss. The main tasks before the volunteers were: finishing the ceiling, preparing and putting paneling/siding on the window panels both inside and out, building and installing benches, building and installing the bulletin board, sanding and varnishing the gazebo posts and interior paneling, setting the pavers in the path, cleaning up the trash and rotted lumber and logs, and clearing out the shrubbery and invasive weeds that had grown up between the gazebo and the post office. The plan also included creating a trail through the woods up to the library site, but that was shelved for later. The weather was beautiful, sunny and warm (actually perhaps a bit too warm) and slightly breezy.

A tremendous amount of work was done this weekend, and the people involved deserve recognition:

Hans Mölders and Deirdre Helfferich were the work party organizers; Deirdre glued hundreds of corks onto the bulletin board; Hans and Don Cameron worked on the gazebo ceiling panels (which Kathy Birch varnished); Nancy Burnham and Maggie Billington tackled invasive weeds and shrubbery; Nancy made a few runs to the store for needed supplies; Eric Glos, Margaret & Stanley Rogers, Amy Cameron, and Maggie were responsible for a large part of the cleanup (Eric did his cleanup of the grounds on Wednesday); Mel Birch worked on cutting cedar siding and preparing it for placement around the windows and Don cut the window arches with a jigsaw and put up siding for two of the window panels; Kathy, Nancy, and Deirdre sanded the cedar shiplap for the inside of the window panels; Joe Geiss made two long and extremely comfortable log benches and Hans, Deirdre, Amy, and Joe installed them (that involved digging four holes in difficult ground!); Sarie Brainerd varnished the posts on one bench and was dogsbody; Jill Cameron and Charlie Gallagher dug holes along the path from the road to the gazebo and installed the pavers (with help from Deirdre, Joe, & Hans); Kathy, Sarie, and Nancy sanded the gazebo posts to smooth them out for the last coat of varnish; Hans and Deirdre installed the bulletin board. Amy also took photos during the work party (soon to be posted).

Nancy Therrell, Nancy Burnham & Don Cameron, Deirdre, and Margaret Rogers brought food and drink for the volunteers, which was definitely appreciated. Unfortunately, the wasps in the vicinity also liked the food, and the volunteers had to compete with them for the hoagie. During the weekend a couple of people got stung, but, considering the amount of activity, the wasps were actually pretty calm.

Everybody knocked off at about 3:30 on Sunday, sitting around for a while recovering from the frenzy of work and cleanup, and got to admire their handiwork. The gazebo is not completely done: the siding and paneling, varnishing, and three ceiling panels need be finished. The gazebo also still needs two more stained glass windows. However, it was ready for the party on Sunday and made a lovely and intimate setting for the people who came to that. More on the gazebo dedication in the next posts.