Disappointed in Depot Park coverage
Editor, The Sun:
I am writing in response to the June 19 Wakulla Sun article written by Linda Ann McDonald, “Honeysuckle Cut at Depot Park in Sopchoppy”:
I was unable to attend the June 9 City Council meeting that Ms McDonald references. However, I did write this unread letter to the council:
My husband & I moved from Tallahassee to Sopchoppy in 2016, so as to be near our grandkids.
I embraced the city, the river life. I was proud to now live in “The Chop”.
I attended a class presented by FNPS Sarracenia Chapter’s Bonnie Basham & Jeannie Brodhead. I signed up to help them establish a native plant sanctuary in my new home’s Depot Park.
The planning, the clearing, the growing, the planting, the watering, the weeding, the maintaining, etc, etc; we worked so hard.
And, today, it is so beautiful; so peaceful; so colorful; so bountiful.
We now have a pitcher plant bog and a wildflower meadow.
We have received so many compliments. We have received awards.
The vines on the pavilions lend green and colorful flowers to plain white concrete. The vines invite in people to sit, eat, watch their kids in the playground or on the open stage area. The passionflower vine has sprouted an amazing, intricate & rare flower.
The coral honeysuckle vines on the fence add color & flow to the sidewalk leading into the park. We volunteers have trimmed the vines and woven them into the fence, so as to allow travel on the sidewalk & to keep harm from the fencing. I only know of harm to the fence when a car plowed into it!
Our park has offered a place for events, such as worm grunting, Light the Night, Alternative Market and oyster feasting.
Please, help to leave our Depot Park as it is: a little slice of southern Heaven.
I received our subscribed Wakulla Sun newspaper yesterday and I was so excited to see my co-volunteer, Lynn Artz, and Sopchoppy Depot Park on the front page. But, the article seemed so negative about us volunteers and our beautiful park. I was so hurt. This is the park that my son’s kids call “Grandma’s Park”, because, like other volunteers, I am there working monthly, even bimonthly.
To your readers: please, help us with the continued Sopchoppy park restoration and beautification. Have yourself or Ms. McDonald come to the park on one of our work days and pull some weeds, trim a tree, or plant flowers that come to vibrant life.
Pam Pafford
Sopchoppy
Depot Park volunteers work unappreciated
I am writing this in response to the June 16th article about the concerns regarding the Sopchoppy Depot Park. Like many of us locals I have heard countless people commenting on how delightful the park is due to the native plants, which is directly attributed to a few devoted volunteers. I’m not sure most people realize the countless hours and personal resources they’ve put in to creating & maintaining this extraordinary place which would otherwise be a decent but plain city park. Their work has attracted grants, notoriety, environmental benefits, visitors and educational opportunities.
Part of what makes it such a wondrous setting are the native vines, some of which have apparently caused concern to city staff tasked with difficult maintenance duties. Damage to the fence occurring due to the vines is unclear (considering a vehicle drove through it) but they are very well-kept.
One individual mentioned concern over sullying the beauty of the fence itself. Indeed,it is a nice fence; however, the delicate vinery enhances it to something inviting rather than utilitarian. Nevertheless, the volunteers immediately responded to the concerns of actual and predicted damage, toiling away in dreadful weather conditions. There was also mention of the pavilion vines being the cause of a wasp sting? People are subject to being stung while anywhere outdoors so I don’t believe we should fault the vines. Still, the volunteers are working on this as well.
Thank you to those commissioners who complimented the volunteers and appreciate the result of their labor, as well as generously offering to contribute themselves. I believe everyone will be satisfied with the results. I simply wish more emphasis had been placed on such camaraderie in the article, and I hope the community will place more emphasis on appreciating this delightful park and supporting these outstanding volunteers. They truly deserve it.
Respectfully,
Tess Coetzee
Carrabelle