FROGS Doubles its Impact with a Mastenbrook Grant
by Aimee Martin, FROGS Board Member
Pathway to the ponds. Photo by Debbie Waugh.
Have you ever walked down to the ponds at Green Spring after a rain? You might notice that the paved path from the parking area is sometimes wet and muddy from water seeping out of the hillside. For some time Green Spring Gardens has wanted to protect the hillside, the quality of the water that enters Turkey Cock Run (part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed) and, importantly, our visitors who navigate the slippery path. The solution is a retaining wall along the path.
To achieve this goal FROGS pledged $11,000 of the funds raised through activities and your generous donations. They were able to double the amount by qualifying for a matching grant of $11,000 from the Fairfax County Park Authority. Other authorized funds will cover the remaining costs. The wall will be installed above the paved trail leading down to the ponds and gazebo area. It will be finished with a stone veneer closely matching the existing retaining wall near the Vista Garden. We hope that this brief inconvenience will be rewarded by a safer, more comfortable walk, and knowledge that we are protecting the Chesapeake Bay.
Never heard of the Mastenbrook Grant? The grant is named for John Mastenbrook, a 21-year veteran of the Fairfax County Park Authority Board. In 1998 he created a matching grant program to encourage public and private ventures that would improve Fairfax County parks and park facilities. FROGS has been partnering with Mastenbrook grants since 1999, thanks to the generous support of FROGS members and the public. We could not have supported Green Spring Gardens for over twenty-five years without your donations and countless volunteer hours in service to Green Spring Gardens.
> See the Fairfax County Press Release for additional information and project details.
