By Mary Owen
Thanks to some Stayton High School and Corban University students, Stayton’s Westown wall has a fresh new look.
The group covered graffiti with salvaged gray paint from Marion County Recycling Center, said Angeline Lehnert, who coordinates volunteers for the city of Stayton.
“It was hard getting into all the pores and cracks, but we’ll give it one more coat,” Lehnert said.
The first coat is about two-thirds done, and as several people have mentioned, doesn’t quite match, Lehnert said.
“We hope to cover the entire wall with a second coat this summer,” said Lehnert, who projected more help from the students who turned out for the first round of the project, one of several identified by Dave Kinney, public works director, and Bob Parsons.
“I’m also working on getting Regis High students interested in helping on their service day in May,” Lehnert said.
Initially, about 25 of Katie Agee’s and Sean Potter’s students picked up donated paint brushes and began to paint the wall along Gardner Street in February as part of Stayton High’s volunteer day. They were so enthusiastic about the project that several returned to paint during spring break, Lehnert said.
Also helping were half of the members of Corban College’s baseball team, she said. “The other half helped at Stayton’s Habitat for Humanity house.”
Randy Cranston, who heads the Faith Relations Committee for the local Habitat chapter, was impressed that the entire baseball team and three coaches from his alma mater got involved.
“There were about 30 altogether,” he said. “They worked about 750 hours, one day on two houses in Salem, and two days in the house in Stayton.”
The Corban crew poured concrete, trimmed windows and doors, put in landscaping, worked on decks and porch railings, weatherized and painted, Cranston said.
“I was just overwhelmed with all they did,” he said. “What greater service than to help build a house for a family in need!
“Hopefully, we planted a seed, and we can call on them again,” he added.
Lehnert agrees. She hopes volunteers will come forward for other city projects, including helping remove brush from local parks.
“We have lots of invasive species – Scotch broom, blackberries,” she said.
Painting park benches, picking up litter along park trails and becoming a neighborhood liaison with the city are just a few ways people can help, according to Lehnert.
“We’re also open to art projects – painting murals, building flower boxes,” she added.
She credited local volunteers, from interested individuals to Boys Scouts and members of other organizations, for helping out city-owned facilities, including the library and the pool. Although giving to the community is not new, city officials are trying to “gear up” volunteerism, saving the city money and man hours, Lehnert said.
“It’s all about community pride and buy in,” Lehnert said. Of the Westown wall, she added, “We hope this project will be ongoing with people in the community helping to maintain it.”
The students she added, “were great!”
Stayton High student Gabby Pasturel said painting the wall was “really fun.”
“Everyone that painted the wall was really nice and fun to talk to,” she said. “I would love to do it again. My next goal is to help out with the Brown House.”
Joshua Warner, centerfielder on the Corban baseball team, enjoyed swinging a hammer instead of a bat.
“We were all very excited to help out someone in the community in this way,” said Warner, speaking for his teammates who worked on the Habitat project with him. “It was a really good use of our time, and we all enjoyed ourselves.”
Infielder Trevor Winsor was grateful to have the opportunity to share his faith through volunteering.
“To be able to show the love of Christ to our community,” Winsor said.
Like Pasturel, both Warner and Winsor said they will gladly help again in the near future.
Local residents George and Bobby Shore were enthusiastic about the students’ work.
“Having these young people give back to the town they live in is wonderful,” they agreed. “They are our future, and we appreciate what they did!”
For information about volunteer opportunities, call Lehnert at 503-769-2998.
