A few blog posts from the Little Lebowski's Urban Achievers regarding their experience volunteering at the Fremont Abbey Arts Center.
How do Little Lebowski's Urban Achievers celebrate World Poetry Day, a.k.a. March 21st? No, not by reciting Keats, Whitman, or Dickinson! By dipping our cell phones in joint compound & whistling "Oh! Susanna" to a paint brush. Actually, none of this has much to do with poetry; it does have everything to do with performing arts. On the 21st we helped out at the Fremont Abbey. The Abbey is a former Lutheran church built in the early 20th century that is now a nonprofit arts center. Some of the work our team did was paint a room, sand a door, heft dry wall up to a attic room, clean the exterior walls of the abbey, and the list goes on. Some lucky team members were even given free burgers & fries by a local burger joint for doing such a great job cleaning the sidewalks. As usual it was another fun & rewarding experience. And, if you get the chance, check out fremontabbey.org & go see some local talent. So, to quote Byron: "Fare thee well! and if for ever, still for ever, fare thee well".
- Rob
---------------------
The Little Lebowsky Helpers worked at the Fremont Abbey Arts Center last weekend, and it made me realize that more people need to care about their community. We helped clean up around the grounds, and do some maintenance. The best part, but at the same time the dirtest part, was picking up trash around the grounds. It was mostly cigerette butts (smokers, please don't throw out your butts! No one wants to see them), but people driving and walking around Fremont kept saying "Thank You", and even gave us free food in appreciation for our cleaning. It made me feel great, and I also hoped that it encouraged them to get involved in the community as well. Neighboors can't rely on volunteers all the time to help out in the community, and I hope that seeing our team out there, triggered something. It is rare that there is something special in a community like the Abbey Arts Center and I am greatful that our team can help keep the Center alive and going.
- Monica
-----------------------
The most amazing thing about the cigarette butt is its permanence. Long after the business end of the cigarette has burned away, and its pungent smoke dissipated into the ether, the small, determined butt maintains its claim on the sidewalk.
I'd never really pondered this little wonder before spending a couple of hours doing street cleanup last Saturday for Fremont Abbey Arts Center, a non-profit community arts hub. Our Seattle Works team, Little Lebowski's Urban Achievers, offered many helping hands on tasks ranging from painting and sanding to door-handle installation to mixing concrete. The Abbey had the most organized plan for our volunteer stint that many of us had ever seen - a whiteboard of tasks, with estimated times and resources needed, ready for us to plow through as thoroughly as we could.
Everyone took part in the street cleanup, which covered a swathe of Fremont Ave from 41st to 46th, and on 43rd from Fremont to Aurora. Not only did we get to use graffiti remover and those awesome grab-stick things, we garnered a little bit of attention, and got a chance to promote both Seattle Works and Fremont Abbey to curious passers-by. "We're the neighbors, and we should be out there helping you," said one pair.
The Abbey would be glad to have your help anytime, I suspect, as would our team.
As for the cigarette butts, I guess living in an urban jungle like Seattle has trained me, somewhat unconsciously, to tune out that level of garbage like white noise. Actively looking for them, trying to clean up every last one, was a combination of maddening and satisfying.
How, I wondered, does this small, art-focused community group wind up responsible for keeping that much street uncluttered? Isn't it too much?
But by adopting that portion of street, and being out there actively improving the neighborhood, they create a lasting impression in the community they're trying to bring together. It's far more than any one person could handle, even as a full-time job.
But that's just the point, isn't it? It takes the whole community to really make it work.
- Tim
---------
This past weekend our team worked with the Fremont Abbey Arts Center. This is an organization that is trying to maintain an area where artists can come together to create and perform. I love to see people who feel so passionate about their mission – it is inspiring. We were charged with the cleaning of both the interior and exterior of the building along with various painting projects. The “To Do” list was long and being new to the team I was a bit intimidated by the scope of their goals for the day…however after cleaning the surrounding few blocks I knew we would tackle the list! I am not going to lie it was rather disgusting picking up cigarette butts blocks on end, yet, on two separate occasion people stopped to thank our small group for what we were doing…that got me charged to get back in there and cross more things off the list…we painted, we sanded, we painted some more, we washed dishes and before I knew it we had completed everything on the list. Both Emily and Isaac thanked us throughout the day and profusely as we were leaving. It meant so much to help create a clean slate so to speak for the Abbey so that they could turn it into something beautiful…as only an artist can!
- Rebecca
---------
AB FAB….
Ab Fab….I am referring to the fabulous Fremont Arts Center’s Abbey of course! The Little Lebowski’s took on a few hours of spring cleaning projects at the Abbey on March 21st. Not the official first day of spring, but close enough. We met some great Fremont neighbors who welcomed our cleaning and met us with a quick “thanks” as they flew by on their bikes down the street. We began our morning by picking up trash along Fremont Avenue and then went inside the Abbey for the remaining projects. The Abbey staff (Hi Isaac and Emily!) were great and very organized. We painted walls and bathrooms, primed doors for refinishing, fixed doorknobs and cleaned the outside of the Abby. We were fueled by Monica’s amazing cupcakes and the energy of working as a group to help the Abbey. I am looking forward to attending a future event at the Abbey and to check out the new paint job on the reception counter in the Great Hall!
- Jen
------------
Our Saturday began at 10am with a historical introduction to the Center of the Universe (Fremont) and the Fremont Abbey specifically, a 1914 brick church. The building itself is gorgeous and has been undergoing constant change. Today, the Fremont Abbey Arts Center is a place to gather for performances, workshops, collaboration and classes. This became apparent when the drummers started to arrive at 12pm.
As a team leader, I am accustomed to moving tasks along. I often warn the host projects that our team is thorough and efficient. Well, the Abbey took us seriously and had an impressive list of projects for us to complete, written neatly in two columns on a white board. Even I looked at the list and thought “Can we finish all of this in four hours?” True to my words, our team is thorough and efficient. We finished all of their projects before 1pm, when the drummers arrived. It was incredible to see the Abbey being utilized. So often we volunteer at projects and don’t have the opportunity to see the group of people we are serving. It feels good to make a difference in a short period of time.
-Natasha
-----------
This past Saturday, team Little Lebowski's Urban Achievers, did some damage on the to-do list at the Fremont Arts Abbey. The staff was so organized and had all of our tasks laid out as soon as we arrived - which we love! Street clean-up, window washing, dry walling, door sanding and staining, painting various rooms, dish washing...they had it on their list and we crossed it off! While some of the "doodies" (I mean, duties) got a little dirty (who deposits their underwear on Fremont Ave at 10am on a Saturday?) it was good, clean fun and very productive! I love Seattle Works because it introduces me to organizations I might not know of otherwise. The staff was great, the project was fun and I really feel like we made a difference for them...which is what counts!
- Katie
-----------
After a brief, yet detailed history lesson of Fremont from Isaac, the Little Lebowski's Urban Achievers got to work revitalizing the Fremont Abbey Arts Center. Built in 1914, the center has gone through many transformations with a variety of tenants that occupied the space. With all the changes, the physical aspects of the building needed a lot of work! Enter Seattle Works Team Works!
Wasting zero time at all, we set our sites on cleaning up the community by scouring every inch of side walk picking up litter. After the streets were free of trash, we split into two major groups: one group started by restoring the exterior, while the second worked on the inside. From sweeping and scrubbing the exterior of the building, to trimming English ivy, we made sure the building sparkled! On the inside, walls were repainted, windows were polished, doors were sanded down and stained, we did it all! To top off the renewing of the Fremont Abbey Arts Center, a hole was dug and cement was mixed to install a much needed brand new mail box for the arts center.
