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Outdoor Industry Executives Roll Up their Sleeves to Make a Difference in Boston
Outdoor Industry Association and Timberland Partner with Four Local Organizations on Outdoor Service Projects
Outdoor Industry Executives Roll Up their Sleeves to Make a Difference in Boston
Outdoor Industry Association
Boulder, Colo. --(Ammoland.com)- On Friday, Oct. 5 2012, more than 300 executives from the outdoor industry will fan out across Boston to volunteer on four service projects as part of OIA Rendezvous, the annual executive leadership and education conference for the outdoor industry organized by Outdoor Industry Association (OIA).
Sponsored by Timberland, the service projects will put outdoor industry representatives to work with four local nonprofits — Middlesex Fells Reservation, Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center, Trustees of the Reservations (at Bradley Estate) and Franklin Park Zoo — to do extensive trailwork, maintenance, planting and harvesting, play area installations and other outdoor work. The service projects cap off the three-day OIA Rendezvous conference, which draws hundreds of leaders from outdoor companies throughout the country.
Local community service is an integral part of OIA Rendezvous. Timberland has been sponsoring the Rendezvous service projects for 14 years.
“At Timberland, community engagement is at the heart of who we are as a brand and who we are as people,” said Cassie Heppner, senior manager of North America marketing for Timberland. “And any time we can link these efforts to the outdoors, even better. We look forward to serving alongside our outdoor industry partners and local community members to help effect real and positive change right here in our backyard of Boston. It’s amazing how much 300+ people can accomplish in one day!”
“Rendezvous is about bringing people together for learning and community-building,” said Frank Hugelmeyer, president and CEO of OIA. “The service projects are a great way to bond with industry colleagues while giving back to the host community.”
At the Trustees of the Reservation’s 90-acre Bradley Estate, volunteers will lend a hand with trail maintenance, harvesting vegetables, preparing the farm for winter, painting, mulching and more.
“We rely on the generosity of volunteers to support the vast number of properties under the care of the Trustees. We are quite a small staff compared to the amount of land managed, so every hand really does help when caring for our special places,” said Lisa Caissie, director of volunteer services at the Trustees of Reservations.
Members of the media are invited to join the Middlesex Fells, Franklin Park Zoo or Bradley Estate projects on Friday, Oct. 5, from 1:30-3:30 pm. Details below.
To learn more about Rendezvous, please visit outdoorindustry.org/rendezvous
About the Projects
Middlesex Fells Reservation
The Middlesex Fells Reservation is a 2,575-acre retreat for city dwellers, with terrain suitable for hikers, mountain bikers, horseback riders, rock climbers, cross-country skiers and picnickers as well as natural and cultural history buffs. The State of Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation will team with the Appalachian Mountain Club to provide a number of projects, including closure of “unofficial” trails, tree and trail pruning, fence repair, trail “rehab,” trail blazing, and possibly painting and new plantings of wildflowers and native shrubs.
Franklin Park Zoo
Long considered the “crown jewel” of Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace Park System, Franklin Park Zoo is a 72-acre site nestled in Boston’s historic Franklin Park. Volunteers will have the opportunity to assist in the preparation, installation and maintenance of a new Australia-themed play area on the zoo’s Outback Trail. This fun-filled area will include a spider web, kangaroo footpath, coiled rubber snakes, and even an interactive boomerang. Help is needed building and installing (even testing!) the new equipment and toys, as well as preparing the grounds surrounding the new play area by planting trees, shrubs and flowers, landscape construction, mulching, raking and sweeping.
Bradley Estate (Trustees of the Reservations)
The Bradley Estate’s 90-acre country retreat sits only a short distance from hectic Route 128, offering thousands of visitors a tranquil respite from their busy lives just outside of Boston. The Bradley Estate is also home to the City Harvest Youth Corps Program, a farm-based teen employment program that fosters a connection to the land and local food through hands-on, agricultural experiences while teaching critical work and leadership skills. The Bradley farm grows food for urban farmer’s markets and food donation to local food pantries and city nutrition programs. OIA project volunteers will lend a hand with the following projects: maintain trails, harvest veggies for the city farmer’s markets, plant cover crops and prepare the farm for winter, paint, mulch, fence repair, stone wall repair, rake, repair of cold frames, plant, prune, re-build chicken pen fencing, build benches, and more.
Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center
One of the largest, most accessible and most ecologically diverse islands in the Boston Harbor Islands National Park Area, Thompson Island features 204 acres of mature forests, meadows, beaches and marine wetlands. The island is home to the Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center and its campus of historic brick buildings resembles a small New England college. Volunteers will arrive by ferry to the island where an abundance of different projects will be available, including painting, trailwork, raking, weeding and concrete repair. There will even be some light carpentry work, helping build structures.
About Outdoor Industry Association
Based in Boulder, Colo., with offices in Washington, D.C., Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) is the leading trade association for the outdoor industry and the title sponsor of Outdoor Retailer. OIA supports the growth and success of more than 4,000 manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, sales representatives, and retailers of outdoor recreation apparel, footwear, equipment and services. For more information, go to outdoorindustry.org or call 303.444.3353.
About Timberland
Timberland, a wholly owned subsidiary of VF Corporation, is a global leader in the design, engineering and marketing of premium-quality footwear, apparel and accessories for consumers who value the outdoors and their time in it. Timberland markets products under the Timberland®, Earthkeepers, Timberland PRO®, Mountain Athletics, and Timberland Boot Company brands, all of which offer quality workmanship and detailing and are built to withstand the elements of nature. The company’s products can be found in leading department and specialty stores as well as Timberland® retail stores throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, South America, South Africa and the Middle East. Timberland’s dedication to making quality products is matched by the company’s commitment to “doing well and doing good” — forging powerful partnerships among employees, consumers and service partners to transform the communities in which they live and work. To learn more about Timberland, please visit timberland.com.
2012-10-02 16:29:09
Source: http://www.ammoland.com/2012/10/01/outdoor-industry-association-rendezvous/
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