On Saturday, August 1, 2020, the Killeen Platoon partnered with Keep Copperas Cove Beautiful (KCCB) and the American Veterans Mission (AVM) in beautifying and painting a total of 30 picnic tables and two park benches at the Copperas Cove Parks & Recreation located at 1206 W Avenue B in Copperas Cove from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM, central standard time.
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The event garnered over 50 volunteers, broken down into groups or sections, to comply with Texas’ and partner organizations’ social distancing and mass gathering guidelines.
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Members of the volunteer force also constituted members of the Keep Copperas Cove Beautiful (KCCB) committee, American Veterans Mission (AVM), Justserve.org, Missionary.org, and local residents.
When the Richard E. Cavazos Elementary School’s Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO)’s president, Ms. Bonita Henderson, heard about all the good things the Killeen Platoon was doing in our local communities, she reached out for our assistance to build a garden that would accommodate children with disabilities while providing fresh fruits and vegetables to those in need.
The Killeen Platoon and American Veterans Mission (AVM) answered the call and planned a series of events to clear a plot for a school garden and to build some fruit and vegetable planters for the school kids. Cavazos PTO president, Bonita Henderson, and Killeen Platoon leader & AVM’s president, Tony Martinez, planned the event in five phases: (1) site preparation & cleanup, (2) constructing the planters, (3) planting fruits & vegetables in the planters, (4) beautification & maintenance, and (5) harvest. The platoon was flexible enough to continually refine their plans as they went through each phase to comply with the state and local directives for social distancing and mass gatherings in the city of Nolanville.
Since children with disabilities requiring special accommodations would utilize the school garden, and per the request of the PTO’s president, the volunteers built the planters to abide by the rules established by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The planters, therefore, are ADA-compliant so that children with disabilities, particularly those who are wheelchair-bound, could participate in other stages of the project.
“By building this garden for the school children and inviting them to till the garden, we are doing our part of engaging and involving our young community members in a positive civic activity that would benefit them in the long term. We are also showing these children the value of diversity and inclusion as we heartily invite children with physical and learning disabilities to participate in the project.”
– Tony Martinez, Killeen Platoon leader & AVM president
Martinez also stated that, “Through this service project with Richard E. Cavazos Elementary School’s PTO, our platoon can serve as an authentic example to the public that we work together and with one another to protect the environment, provide for the longevity of our food supplies, and maintain ecological support systems for future generations.” Together, everyone achieves more!
