folbot | HarborLAB

Diana, Miyeon, and EJ at work on the second shed.

HarborLAB volunteers had an amazingly productive Sunday, and had lots of fun in the process! Our goals were to winterize our Newtown Creek waterfront site and prepare it for transformation into the GreenLaunch in the spring. It sure felt like spring already!

We assembled a second shed and platform, repaired “The Jenni” tandem Folbot kayak for use by Baruch College environmental science classes (named for our late friend and CUNY alumna, Jenni Jenkins), set up planters and protected fruit trees from root freeze with vinyl and bags of cocoa shells, gathered seeds (especially pokeberry, goldenrod, and milkweed) for habitat and shoreline stabilization, and protected public boats from UV degradation with tarps. We donated many bricks to Build it Green, delivering them by van. Our bricks, which are molded with holes, are being built sideways into walls in South Africa to allow air circulation.

Many thanks to Patricia Erickson, who directed the day’s work as HarborLAB’s facilities manager and chair of the GreenLaunch committee. A special acknowledgment to Shawn and Miyeon Cornell, who were married just this month and shared this special time with us as stellar volunteers. They are CUNY students, as is Diana Arias, another fantastic volunteer who threw herself into the work (we met her through the great Baruch College ECO Club). Rounding out the crew were Irene McLoughlin, Alessandro Byther (daring Alpinist of bricks and plastic heights), Jenna Nugent, Davis Janowski, Erik Baard, and EJ Lee (HarborLAB operations manager and a CUNY alumna).

Great thanks also to Schuman Properties for our launch and to Citizens Committee for NYC for the initial GreenLaunch project grant. Much gratitude also to Folbot, Lamar Outdoors, Dorothy Morehead for our supplies.

: Our new shed came with its own gargoyle (Alessandro). We have no idea what Shawn was doing inside.

: Alessandro readies the roof at sunset.

: Patricia was the brains of the operation.

: Jenna looking singularly sane.

: Davis, Shawn, EJ, and Diana setting up walls.

HarborLAB attended Jersey Paddler‘s 2014 Paddlesport Show, the East Coast’s largest annual canoe, kayak, and stand-up paddle board expo. Erik Baard and EJ Lee represented HarborLAB to safe boating educators with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary (Vessel Examination – Paddlecraft) and American Canoe Association, as well as a host of environmental educators and manufacturers (Folbot, Hobie, and Johnson Outdoors had especially strong showings). It was a great gathering. We purchased nautical charts, waterproof illustrative guides to estuary fauna, a safety horn, scupper hole plugs, reusable tie-downs, and other useful gear. We also received free waterproof cell phone dry bags. A huge bonus was that HarborLAB won a free whitewater rafting trip for two from Jim Thorpe River Adventures that we’ll use as a raffle or auction prize at a future fundraiser!