Steps Along the Way
WPC's Milestones in 2004

Increasing Our Community Partnerships

WPC’s community gardens need local volunteer commitment to continue from year to year. Our Community Conservation staff works hard to ensure that our connection to each community continues, even as volunteer groups evolve and community dynamics shift. Sometimes, though, despite WPC’s best efforts, a garden faces an uncertain future due to loss of that critical volunteer presence. That was the situation this year in Castle Shannon; but instead of being retired or phased out, the Castle Shannon garden will continue thanks to new volunteers who stepped forward when the need arose.
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Established in 1998, the garden at the junction of Castle Shannon Boulevard and Mount Lebanon Boulevard in suburban Allegheny County hit a turning point in the spring of 2004. Long-time caretaker for the garden, the Castle Shannon Garden Club, decided to disband. Rather than disappoint the students from Keystone Oaks High School who have planted the garden for many years, WPC organized the 2004 planting and began a search for a new steward. Many phone calls later, after discussion with the mayor of Castle Shannon, local businesses, the Chamber of Commerce and others, no garden steward had been found. As a last resort, WPC Community Conservation staff hung a large banner at the garden asking for help to “Save this Garden!”

Calls flowed in, and we found a local resident ready and willing to take responsibility for organizing the garden’s future care. The community has made a renewed commitment to the garden, assuring that it will remain a source of beauty and inspiration for residents and visitors alike.

Go to our next 2004 milestone,
1963-2004 A Fallingwater Timeline ...