New friends in the Panther Patch

Spring has come to the Panther Patch!

The Triangle is slowly transforming from a blank brick hot box to a beautiful butterfly/reading garden. This week Mrs. Kinsey and Mrs. R planted the butterfly bed. (4 months ago and today)








Mrs Kinsey also added some beautiful Hibiscus to the pots by the door.

Out by the slab there were also some improvements.

This week Kristi Miller was able to finish the picnic tables for us and she power washed walls and the slab. Thanks Kristi! Now we can arrange the picnic tables without interfering with the map and we are ready for our painters to paint a new Alaska!

Amother HUGE thanks to Chris and Brenda Lewis (and Holly!) who came out today and finished the paver pathway to the slab!!! The Lewis' have been so great to pitch in whenever we need help. Thank you Lewis family!

AND Look who came home to Roost in the Panther Patch this week...

Introducing Gerty the Garden Bird!

Gerty stands across the slab from our grade level planting beds and keeps a watchful eye on our gardens. Since she flaps her wings and moves in the wind you might think she is about to fly away! But we have made very sure she will stay put and watch over the Spring Valley Gardens for many years to come!!!

Gerty isn't the only new resident in the Panther Patch! Meet Pax the P-Patch baby panther! Pax seems to be keeping a close eye on Gerty! He plans to hang out under the arbor and let the creeping jasmine hide him so someday he can sneak up on that big orange bird across the way!

Isn't he cute! Pax is part of the finishing touches planned on the P Patch arbor.

This week several grades will come out to the P Patch to plant their grade level gardens!

We are so excited to finallly let the students of Spring Valley experience the P Patch! We can't wait until the Panther Patch is complete and fully operational!!!

What a difference 4 months can make!

If you have any questions or suggestions please let us know in comments!
The Panther Patch Committee

What's new this week?

UPDATE: We are going to work this Sunday April 5th from 3pm to 6 pm if anyone would like to invest a little sweat equity into The Panther Patch! Wear your mud shoes, gloves and bring a trowel!

This week our weather vane finally came to roost on the weather pole! Hope to have more weather items up soon!

Two things that were not there this time last week! Our copper topped bird feeder and the our rooster weather vane.

AND a HUGE thanks to Mrs. Kinsey and Mrs. Ridlehuber who plated the window box for us! It is just perfect! Can't wait to see more green and growing thing sprout to life in the panther patch!

We are getting greener every week!

Panther Patch Pride

We had a very successful 3 workday weekend in the Panther Patch thanks to the MIS Panther Pride kids, Boy Scout Troop 476, several Spring Valley PTA families and the ever faithful Panther Patch committee!







Look at what was accomplished!

CHANGE OF PLANS!!!

Due to the weather forecast for tomorrow, the Panther Patch Workday is going to be drastically reduced. Instead of being 11am- 4pm we are only going to work from 2pm-4pm.

If the windchill stays in the 40's, we will cancel Saturday's work time all together. We don't want any of our wonderful volunteers to get sick!

The forecast is great for Sunday though so please come join us from 2-5pm Sunday afternoon!

Don't forget to wear mud shoes and bring gloves, shovels and wheel barrows! Feel free to reply to this e-mail or give me a call if you have any questions. Thanks for all you support of The Panther Patch and Spring Valley!

Workday Weekend

This is going to be a very active week in The Panther Patch!
You are welcome to come during any of the times listed below.

Panther Patch Committee prep day
Friday, March 27, 10AM until 2PM

PTA Board & Friends Workday
Saturday, March 28, 11AM to 4PM

Boy Scout Troop & Panther Pride Service Day
Sunday, March 29, 2PM to 5PM

Whether you can come for the whole work time every day, or just an hour here and there, we appreciate any time you can give. To work in the Panther Patch we ask that all volunteers wear sturdy shoes and clothes appropriate for yard work. It would also be helpful if you can bring work gloves, trowels, rakes, and shovels. We will also need several wheelbarrows this weekend.

Please leave a comment or give me a call if you have any questions.
We truly appreciate anytime you have to give!

The Panther Patch Committee

Pictures of Progress

Even though we are far from finished, it is already fun to look at the Panther Patch "then" and "now" pictures.
Then

Now


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Considering we just started working outside mid-January, I think these pictures show a lot of progress! I can not wait to be able to post the true "before" and "after" pictures in May!!!

The Updated Plan

So much has changed since I made the first computer drawing of The Panther Patch back in December! Of course little has changed on the drawing compared to what has happened outside in the real Panther Patch! We are 70% complete and on track for our ribbon cutting ceremony on May 11th.

While nothing MAJOR has changed on the plan, we have tweaked a few details and added some features. The current drawing reflects some positive changes due in part to excesses in our budget after the bidding/actuals process as well as the culmination of ideas and suggestions from many people. We are working hard to make The Panther Patch something very special for the students and teachers of Spring Valley Elementary. A picture of the current plan is posted below. (Enlarge the image by clicking on it.) Please leave a comment or contact me if you have any questions or suggestions.



After Spring Break I will take pictures and try to show some of the real progress we have made outside!
Stephanie