June 3rd, 2006
Written by Project Leader Jim Bailey
Lets go!
This year marks the 15th anniversary of Nippon Kan’s bi-annual volunteer service project with the Denver Park and Recreation Department of Denver. To celebrate, Nippon Kan students, family members and friends took on an especially big project this year!
On June 3rd, the “Nippon Kan Army” headed to Weir Gulch, a 100 year old waterway system in Denver cordoned in many parts on both sides by thirty foot concrete walls. Over the years a vast portion of these walls have been covered with graffiti, making them an eyesore for the surrounding community. The challenge for our sixty plus volunteers was to paint over a mile of walls on both sides of the waterway.
120 gallons of paint, donated by the Home Depot Corporation were used by volunteers wearing Government Issue rubber boots and wielding 12 foot paint rollers! The Denver Parks Department had thought that we might be able to cover about seven blocks of walls in one day, but we surprised them by covering an additional five blocks before noon!
Homma Kancho told the “troops” before the project began, “Looks like today we will be having jo practice outside. Our jos today are a little funny in shape but they should do fine!
This is an Aikido Nippon Kan style weapons seminar. With this project we can help others as we practice. This is a good a chance to fulfill our civic responsibility to our community. Once in a while, standing up to your ankles in creek water, facing a mile of walls of graffiti is a good time to reflect on our position in the community. This kind of activity can be more beneficial than paying a high price to attend a seminar in a resort somewhere!
Many of our students have brought their children to help today. I think this is such a positive lesson to teach our young people, and it makes me proud to see these lessons being passed on to a second generation of Nippon Kan students.”
With that, Homma Kancho and the Nippon Kan army marched into the gulch, paint rollers held high! Thank you everyone for doing a fantastic job!
Photo album
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- Trading in jo’s for paint rollers.
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- The beginning of 12 blocks of painting.
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- A long way to go…
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- Our “cutest volunteer” dressed in his “Government Issue” Parks Dept. yellow boots!
Nippon Kan’s finest volunteers! Mr Morris Brown 83 (in the shades) and Mr. Heinz Schlue.
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- Before painting.
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- After painting over the graffiti.
Kids learning the lessons of the day helping mom and dad!
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- Homma Kancho treats volunteers to lunch.
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- Of course Homma Kancho worked too!