Around 400 volunteers worked at 14 different locations Saturday around Jefferson City as part of an annual way for residents to give back to their community.
"Serve Jeff City" looks to raise the consciousness about volunteering, said organizer Ken Hussey, who also serves as Third Ward Jefferson City Councilman and YMCA Community Relations Director. He noted many people want to serve, but don't know the best way to get involved.
He described Serve Jeff City as a "dedicated day to help get people thinking about community service and create some synergy around it."
Having hundreds convene on one day also creates economies of scale that make it easier to plan projects.
Hussey said the idea came to him when he saw the post of a Facebook friend from Cincinnati. He started to ponder the possibility of a community wide day of service in Jefferson City, he said.
Soon, leaders from the YMCA, United Way and the city's Department of Parks and Recreation were strategizing ways to make it work.
Saturday's projects include cleaning trash in the downtown, landscaping around the greenway trail through Lincoln University, filling the sandboxes and planting flowers at Jefferson City Day Care on Myrtle Avenue, clearing trash along Wears Creek and cleaning up the grounds around the Special Learning Center on Fairgrounds Road.
One of the biggest projects was at Memorial Park, where volunteers cleaned up the park to get it ready for use by residents this summer.
Karen Brackmeyer was with a group from Wesley United Methodist Church and said this was their first time being involved with this.
"We've lived here 30 years, and we felt this was a good way to give back to the community," she said. "We even learned something today. They showed us how to plant a tree."
The Memorial Park site served as the official Arbor Day site, with demonstrations by parks staff on proper tree planting.
"It's always good to give back to the community," said Zane Henderson, 11, who said he was glad to do something so near to where he goes to school, St. Joseph Cathedral School, which is just across West Main Street from the park.
"It's the first time I've planted a tree this big," he said. "I want to do this again."
"It's spring time and people are outside more and we want to make sure Jefferson City looks pretty," Hussey said. "We also want to make sure all ages can do these projects and that whole families can get involved so all skill levels can contribute. We would love to find ways for more opportunities whether it's large events like this or more targeted ones in the city. We want to make sure we have this down pat."