ReClaim Central Graduation

Last week the GTECH team gathered at the Hill House Blakey Program Center to celebrate the completion of the 2017 ReClaim Central Ambassador projects. The gathering served as a time to reflect on the accomplishments of the projects and to recognize the hard work of the 11 civically-minded Hill District residents who dedicated their time as ReClaim Central Ambassadors.

Beginning last winter, the Ambassadors attended a series of six workshops and educational sessions. During these sessions, the Ambassadors completed designs for vacant land projects through an involved process of community engagement and collaborative decision-making. This summer, they put in the hands-on work of project implementation with the help of volunteer, partners, and community residents. Over the course of our program, GTECH and the Ambassadors brought in 204 volunteers to collectively serve over 800 hours cleaning, clearing, building, and growing 4 new vacant lot projects. The sum of time and energy put forward by the Ambassadors was inspiring. Both the exceptional efforts of these residents as community leaders and the on-the-ground realization of their projects have left us with much to celebrate.

GTECH Executive Director Evaine K. Sing, kicked off the night by praising the Ambassadors for their achievements. She also thanked the partners, such as McCauley Ministries, and the Hillman Foundation, who made it all possible. Ian Brown and Gavin White then called up each project-team individually to acknowledge their hard work, reflect on the challenges and successes of each project, and to celebrate the unique strengths and personalities that made this Ambassador cohort such an inspiring group for GTECH to work with. The Ambassadors received yearbooks, certificates of completion, and photographs of their completed projects.

To view more photos from the event, visit the ReClaim Central Project Page.

For GTECH, the highlight of the evening came when all of the Ambassadors rose to the front of the room to share their gratitude for the ReClaim Central team’s hard work and guidance. We are so happy to have had the chance to work with these Ambassadors, and look forward to seeing what they accomplish next. If you haven’t visited each site yet, be sure to check them out. See below…