Cairn Corner: Leaning Tower of Plant Pots

October 3, 2024

September 2024

Cairn students and mentors kicked off the 2024-2025 Cairn season by returning to the High Plains Environmental Center (HPEC) in Loveland! For many years, VOC has been aiding in HPEC's mission to restore habitat to improve watershed health and create a safe haven for native flora and fauna. Cairn participants continued this tradition by pulling invasive Russian Thistle (think tumbleweed plant from those old Western films) to make room for native Rabbitbrush to thrive.

The leaning tower of plant pots represents the 344 native seedlings grown at HPEC's own nursery on-site that Cairn participants planted around their Visitor Center. These plants will be food sources for the nearly 100 native bee species that can be found on HPEC's 76 acre property (that's about 10% of Colorado's total bee species!).

We thank HPEC for continuing to be a welcoming partner throughout the years and inspiring our future stewards!

Dos Chappell Bathhouse in Denver's Washington Park
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After three meaningful decades, Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) will be saying goodbye to our longtime home at the Dos Chappell Bathhouse in Denver's beloved Washington Park. In the early 1990s, VOC signed a 30-year lease with the City of Denver to transform the historic bathhouse in Washington Park into a headquarters that could support our growing mission. With generous support from our community, we launched a capital campaign and raised $700,000 to complete the initial renovations, which were finalized in 1996. Altogether, including the original renovations, VOC has invested more than $1 million in improvements and ongoing maintenance, creating a space that is enjoyed by our staff, volunteers, and the broader Washington Park community. In 2000, the building was renamed in honor of Dos Chappell, VOC’s former Executive Director (1988–1999), whose vision and leadership left a lasting legacy on our organization and Colorado’s outdoor stewardship movement. This space has been more than just an office—it’s been a gathering place, a launchpad for thousands of volunteers, and a visible symbol of our commitment to caring for Colorado.
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