In Class: Students compete in Soap Box Derby
June 12, 2018
By Annalise Knudson
PLANTING BULBS
Two Staten Island parents were recently honored for their work in improving green spaces around the school grounds of PS 59 in New Brighton.
Frizzi Lilian Linck and Sarah Pollack are on the school's Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and were honored by the New Yorkers for Parks -- a non-profit organization that champions open space for all New Yorkers -- at its annual Daffodil Breakfast.
Every spring, the organization honors Daffodil volunteers for their participation and leadership in The Daffodil Project during its annual Daffodil Breakfast.
The Daffodil Project was created by New Yorkers for Parks as a living memorial to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, by donating free daffodil bulbs across the five boroughs.
The project has become a symbol of the city's resiliency.
When Linck's daughter first began attending PS 59 in 2015, she decided she wanted to help improve the school grounds.
So she joined the PTA and founded the Green Thumb Committee, which aims to engage children in growing their own vegetables and open space stewardship.
The committee and students first began planting donated bulbs from the neighborhood and other parents, which first bloomed in spring 2016.
Through fundraising, plant donations and additional bulbs donated by New Yorkers for Parks, the committee and volunteer parents were able to create a child-friendly, raised-bed vegetable garden at the school.
"These volunteers put in countless hours improving New York City green spaces for the enjoyment of all, and yet all too often they don't receive much recognition beyond their neighborhoods," said Lynn Kelly, executive director of New Yorkers for Parks. "The Daffodil Project has planted over seven million daffodil bulbs across all five boroughs, and that success truly wouldn't be possible without these dedicated and generous New Yorkers. We are delighted to honor and celebrate their work."