Friends of GRPG Board Member: Sandra Wheatley
As Director of Global Community Relations for Cisco, Sandra Wheatley leads the strategy development and execution of the company’s community relations initiatives in the United States and major sites worldwide. In addition, she spearheads Cisco’s Civic Council programs, which drive employee community service throughout the world, and Cisco’s global employee matching gifts programs. Before moving into community relations in 2007, Wheatley spent eight years in Cisco’s Corporate Public Relations group, working in the Office of the President on a range of corporate and business issues as well as education and health care. Wheatley, who has more than 18 years experience in the high-tech industry, previously managed public relations for Advanced Micro Devices. Wheatley serves on the boards of directors for Guadalupe River Parks and Gardens, the Santa Clara Family Health Foundation, InnVision, and the Silicon Valley Education Foundation STEM Initiative. She has a bachelor of science degree in political science from Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, Calif.

Meet Matt Rode
Matt joined the Wednesday volunteer group in July, after wandering through the Heritage Rose Garden one day. Fortunately for us, he realized that helping maintain the roses was an interesting and rewarding thing to do. Matt was born in New York City, but was raised in Oregon.  He has been living in California for about 40 years.  Matt retired from his own printing and copying business three years ago.  In addition to volunteering in the Rose Garden, he enjoys fishing, hiking, and traveling in his spare time. We are glad Matt joined our organization - we hope to keep him here for a long time.  Thanks Matt!

Corporate/Group Work Days
Working together to make a difference in the community is a great way to build team spirit and demonstrate the values of your organization. Guadalupe River Park & Gardens is a regional park in downtown San Jose that offers unique opportunities for groups looking for team building and community service activities. The Friends of Guadalupe provide coordination and supervision and will work with you to find the right project(s) for your group.

Click Here to View the Corporate Work Day Flyer
(.pdf file, 3.9 MB)

The following are just a few of the corporations that have joined us:

Cupertino Electric, Deloitte, NEC, PG & E, Kaiser Permanente, Ernst & Young, HP, Adobe, Cupertino Electric, Apple, DCP, e-Bay, KPMG, Omron

Gardens
Rose Garden Work Days
The Rose Garden is a collection of more than 4,000 antique and modern roses. Established in 1995 through an extensive community effort, the garden contains more varieties (3,500) than any other rose garden in the western hemisphere. While the City of San Jose supplies materials, it is maintained primarily by volunteers. Projects will vary with the time of the year. Volunteers can learn on how to maintain their own roses or just enjoy helping with the maintenance of this special rose garden. On going volunteer workdays: Every Saturday and Wednesday 9:00 am to noon (8:00am to 11:00am June-September). Special summer evening sessions (June-September) 5:30pm-7:30pm.

Courtyard Recycled Water Garden
The Courtyard Garden was one of the first elements of Guadalupe Gardens to be completed. It is a demonstration area showcasing the use of recycled water on a variety of plants. Volunteers assist the City Staff in planting and maintaining the Courtyard Garden. Volunteer workdays: 9:00 am to noon. Special week work hours can also be scheduled.

Taylor Street Rock Garden
The Drought Tolerant Rock Garden on Taylor Street, established in 1992, is a labeled collection of plants and rocks. The Drought Tolerant Garden provides an attractive streetscape and also demonstrates the use of plants and rock to save on precious water resources.

"Yesterday I worked as a supervisor in the Taylor Street Rock Garden. I worked with a group of about 6 or 7 people and boy did it make a difference. In only two and a half hours the area looks so much better. I drive down that road at least once a week and can't wait to get the next section cleaned up. When I got home I was tired and dirty but had the best feeling. The group from Cisco that I worked with was phenomenal. We had a great time working together and are proud of our little rock garden cleanup! Thank you GRPG! I cant' wait for my next volunteer job!"
Kourtney Feinstein
Leaping Designs

Historic Orchard
The Historic Orchard is a 3.3-acre orchard, planted in 1994, to showcase the fruit varieties that once made the Santa Clara Valley famous as “The Valley of Heart’s Delight”. The orchard contains over 250 fruit trees, including cherries, apricots, prunes, apples, and more. Fruit harvested from the orchard is donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara County. Please contact the Volunteer Coordinator to schedule work sessions.

River Clean Ups & Trail Maintenance
At least twice a year the Friends organize river clean-up efforts in the area between Coleman Avenue and HWY 880. This is a great opportunity to meet with friends, co-workers or new friends who share an interest in maintaining the beauty of the river and protecting the natural habitat.

The award-winning 254 acre park, including 2.6 miles of trails, offers visitors an opportunity to explore nature, enjoy the many water features and playground areas, or travel the trails that meander through the park.

Volunteers can help the City of San Jose to maintain the areas of the trail on the 2.6 miles of trail from Hwy. 280 to 880. Projects could include weeding, planting, spread mulch, trimming trees, refurbish park benches, cleaning signs, etc.

Student Interns
Interns work in all areas of our operations, including our Education and Volunteer programs as well as event planning.

Having no experience in events and starting my first internship at GRPG, I feel that I have gotten so much more than what I expected. Working with a small, but fantastic, team was a great experience in itself. Thanks to the staff, I have gained not only event planning experience, but have also learned about the different aspects of the organization. Thank you GRPG for giving me the opportunity!
Thoai-An Le, SJSU

Education Volunteers
Friends of GRPG offer a full calendar of classes and workshops for adults and children. Many of these classes, particularly the ones for children, require volunteers to prepare materials in advance and instructors/assistants to help the education staff deliver the programs. Education volunteers actively participate in all facets of the Friend’s educational activities, including, but not limited to, assistance with after school workshops for children, field trip programs, education booths at festivals, our research library, annual Water Wizard Festival, the compost demonstration site, adult workshops, and preparing material for educational programs.

Special Events
We hold several special events every year including Spring in Guadalupe Gardens (April), Water Wizard Festival (May), Arena Green Adventures (summer), and Pumpkins in the Park (October). Volunteers are recruited to do a variety of tasks for these events including planning, set-up and breakdown, booth staffing, educational activities, and food sales.

"I was quite pleased with my volunteer experience at Pumpkins in the Park this year.  The people there were very welcoming and it gave me what I call "Warm Fuzzies" when I saw little kids with their families picking pumpkins and being happy. The organizers running the show that day were very grateful and amiable, and I would like to thank them."
Anh-Thu Le, Oak Grove High School

Office Volunteers
An abundance of volunteer opportunities exist in our office at the Visitor & Education Center. Activities include clerical work, organizing the library, preparing materials for educational programs, etc. Other tasks can be performed from home. Volunteer efforts in the office allow the Friends’ staff to focus on expanding programs and reaching out even further to the community. Commitment will vary depending on volunteer’s availability. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 8:30am – 5:00 pm.

Featured Project of the Month

Rose pruning clinics
Free rose pruning clinic every Wednesday and Saturday at 9:00 am, starting January 6, 2010 until February 20, 2010, at the Heritage Rose Garden on West Taylor (between Hwy 87 & Coleman Ave.). Call Volunteer Coordinator Lucy Perez at 408-298-7657 to sign up.