Members of Richmond Elks Lodge No. 1251 have been working hard with the staff and parents of St. Paul's School in San Pablo CA to refurbish the baseball infield of school's recreation. Additionally three demonstration garden boxes and composing bins are being installed to provide science projects and teaching aids for staff and students.
Several planning meetings have been held since receiving the Beacon Grant money in January. New bases including a new home plate were ordered. Eight Yards of red cinder stone and four yards of soil were purchased and delivered to the school for the project's first day of work on February 12, 2012.
A St. Paul's parent started the project by water blasting the baseball back boards and bleacher seats and Elks Member Art Smrekar secured a donation of the wood needed for the planter boxes prior to the first work day on February 11, 2012.
Twenty ardent parents and Elks members arrived at 8:00 AM to begin clearing weeds and grass from the infield area. Other preliminary work included spraying the planned infield area with round-up and "dragging" the area with the school's riding mower.
School parents showed up with the tools needed to build the garden boxes and Elks member Mark Maltaglioti provided the tools and guidance to clear the infield and make it ready to be covered by red cinder stone.
By noon three raised garden boxes had been constructed, installed and filled with planting soil. It was a special moment when two very young students found worms in the playground area to be moved to new homes in the garden boxes.
Parents and teachers were very happy to see their long time dream of a new ball field coming into reality. A second work day is planned to paint the baseball back board. An additional eight yards of red cinder stone is needed to properly finish covering the infield.
The project area was previously a cemetery. The remains were relocated in the 50s. However several buried stones were encountered during the installation of the garden boxes.