Community Spotlight: Velia Mendoza and the Neighborhood Walking Group

Velia Mendoza has lived in Cully since 2014, and ever since moving here she has been an active leader in the community. She participates in ABC (Andando en Biciletas en Cully/Riding Bikes in Cully), volunteers at Rigler Elementary School where her daughter goes to school, and currently leads the neighborhood-walking group with her friends Guadalupe Rebollo and Isabel  Eusebio. The walking group meets twice a month to pick up trash in the neighborhood, check for graffiti, and make sure the neighborhood is safe.

At a recent Living Cully Community Advisory meeting, the walking group alerted the group that somebody had dumped large amounts of trash at the Cully Adopt-A-Spot. This “park-let” sits along Highway 30, and serves as a pathway to the Sacajawea School, the 72nd Community Garden, and the new Thomas Cully Park project. Community members helped convert this site into a walking path with native plantings and landscaping in spring 2014. However, it needs routine maintenance to keep it clean and safe. Velia is committed to this mission, saying that keeping her community clean inspires her to keep working. The walking group decided to incorporate routine trash pick-ups and quarterly landscape work parties in their bi-weekly events. Thanks to the 12 community members who attended Wednesday night’s clean up on September 27th, the Adopt-A-Spot is ready for the winter! A huge thank you to Velia, for all that you do.

 


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