As we boarded the bus to take us to the volunteer venue I heard more than one employee broach the idea with the driver of taking us instead to Central City or other points west. As these requests fell on deaf ears, and as the ultimate plan of hijacking the bus quickly, and thankfully, fell apart, we were off. Looking around I saw that we were well represented by all areas of the company. Folks from legal chatted up people from med-pay, claims representatives rubbed shoulders with underwriters and nurses. We were part of the second wave, or afternoon shift, and as we arrived the morning group of volunteers were just wrapping up their efforts. Fortunately the rain had held off for them and gazing up at the still grey skies our group was cautiously optimistic that we might stay dry as well.
The work crews for this volunteer effort were assigned one of three tasks - painting park facilities, picking up trash, or laying mulch to protect trees and flower beds in anticipation of winter storms soon to come. I had signed up for mulch duty and was only slightly in awe of what appeared to be a bazillion metric tons of the stuff lying on the ground next to six or seven minuscule-by-comparison wheel barrows. The good news is that there were also big blue tarps available to help haul the mulch around the park and we certainly had enough hands to give it a go.
It didn't take long to load up the wheel barrows and tarps with their first load. Several of us noted that it hadn't even put a dent in the pile, but we had all afternoon and still fresh muscles. A load of mulch is really not all that heavy but I can vouch for the fact that after dozens of loads it gets your attention. We found it wasn't so much the weight of the load but the distance traveled that wore one down. Of course we had started with the trees and flower beds close at hand but these were quickly dispatched and the hike out to the more distant objects of our intent quickly made clear this would be more of an exercise in walking than anything else. You probably already know this but Denver Parks & Recreation manages some large parks and it was fortunate for us that the planners of our event had been no shirkers in the size and scope of what they expected of us. The park had a sizable lake, several pavilions, a football field, and enough trees to make Smokey the Bear proud.
While some of us hauled mulch others grabbed rakes and neatly arranged our loads around trees and flower beds. Some of the areas had been infiltrated by weeds and employees were down on their hands and knees yanking them out by the roots. In the distance we could see more employees busily painting park shelters and picnic tables, while others were bent over collecting the inevitable trash that accumulates in public areas. Passing me with yet another load, Rob, who works in our Legal department, quipped that he now knew why he worked in an office. Then he was gone leaving me to follow in his wake.
The skies off and on showed potential signs of clearing. The clouds couldn't seem to make up their mind - one moment appearing poised to let loose with a torrential downpour, at others breaking apart to show a trace of clear blue Colorado skies above. Todd, Mark, Sharra Lee and the rest of our safety team, which participates in many of these events to protect those of us who quite candidly don't spend our days doing physical labor from hurting ourselves, were kept busy alternately handing out sunscreen and then plastic ponchos as the storm clouds gathered once more.
As the hours flew by the paint buckets emptied, trash bags filled, and still the mulch pile remained indomitable. Though no one said a word I believe everyone on the shoveling brigade had secretly set themselves the mission of conquering the massive mass of mulch. With sweat dripping they worked feverishly to fill our wheel barrows and tarps as we hauled load after load (after load after load) all over the park. And yes, slowly the pile showed signs of diminishing. However, we were losing the battle of time and before you could say "yes, please put a couple of more shovel loads in my wheel barrow" the folks from Denver Parks mercifully told us we were done for the day. Looking around I saw a lot of happy, smiling, and yes - tired - employees. Pinnacol In Action shirts were wet not with rain but with the sweat of a good effort. Moseying slowly back to the bus we only half-heartedly joked again about it taking us to Central City. Instead most of us were looking forward to a hot shower, some Advil, and a good night's sleep.
The sore muscles will quickly fade from memory but as with all volunteer events the satisfaction of giving something back to the communities who in turn support all of us will last far, far longer. Now where's that Advil...
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