On Nov. 19, 2024, the Woodland Heights Neighborhood Association hosted its annual Thanksgiving potluck at Woodland Heights Presbyterian Church. This was a night for neighborhood citizens to come together, enjoy each other’s company and reflect on things from the previous year that they were thankful for as a community.
The list of everything that we are thankful for this year is too long to list here, but it includes the funding of repairs for our beloved Jefferson Avenue Footbridge; pedestrian safety improvements in the form of crosswalks and curb extensions at several of our most traveled intersections; our working partnerships with Restore SGF, Habitat for Humanity, and the Springfield Dream Center; increased neighborhood volunteer involvement as a result of the Neat Neighborhoods initiative; collaborations with Historic C-Street for events and for helping to showcase our neighborhood artists; the continued construction of the new Reed Academy; and the continued love and support of our community.
Keeping a neighborhood on track is hard work. Countless hours go into planning events and cleanups, hosting meetings, planning future projects, educating the public, and keeping the community safe and tidy. Our volunteers and board members can often find themselves exhausted and stretched thin, but as the end of the year approaches and we can turn and see what lies behind us, we find the exhaustion to be worthwhile. No one ever said progress would be easy. We are thankful for all of the hard work too.
Neighborhood volunteers and Habitat for Humanity make quick work of fall cleanup
On Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, Woodland Heights partnered with Habitat for Humanity to host a neighborhood cleanup in conjunction with Habitat for Humanity’s Rock the Block initiative. Thanks to the help of volunteers from Habitat for Humanity and volunteers from our neighborhood we were able to dispose of multiple dumpsters full of refuse.
Our volunteers spent hours driving over neighborhood streets and picking up couches and mattresses, chipping up large pieces of wood from brush piles, and helping neighbors who were able to transport their own items to the dumpster site to unload. In true Woodland Heights fashion, we also found time to eat a few pastries, drink a few cups of coffee and laugh together. Community is, after all, about the connections that you make.
Woodland Heights is so thankful for our special partnership with Habitat for Humanity. And we look forward to future neighborhood cleanups.
Neighborhood Halloween map results in busy Halloween night in Woodland Heights
In 2021, Woodland Heights neighbors began a serious conversation about Halloween. The neighborhood was attempting efforts at increasing safety and walkability. Neighbors found it troubling that on Halloween night, the streets of Woodland Heights were empty. Many neighborhood residents had fond memories of roaming the neighborhood streets and trick-or-treating on Halloween night, and they were nostalgic for those carefree days. There was an acknowledgement that the world had changed, but also a feeling that Woodland Heights could do better. There had to be a way to attract little ghosts and goblins to roam the neighborhood on Halloween. In 2021, the neighborhood began organizing their own trick-or-treat map to let trick-or-treaters know where treats could be found. Woodland Heights is, after all, a large neighborhood. It can be daunting to just roam blindly. In 2021, about 25 residences signed up to be included on the trick-or-treat map. The trend continued, though.
Springfield does have several Halloween destinations, and Woodland Heights doesn’t necessarily want to compete with those other locales, but we would like to complement. We want to be the little neighborhood where trick-or-treaters can roam until the porch lights go off. This year we’re happy to report that 70 households signed up to be included on the trick-or-treat map, and we had one of the busiest Halloween nights in years! Follow us on Facebook or visit our website. The digital Halloween map will be available at both of those locations next year.
Lantern Walk offers chance to collaborate with other neighborhoods
On Oct. 5, 2024, Woodland Heights was thrilled to partner with the Doling Neighborhood Association, the Robberson Neighborhood Association, and Historic C-Street for the SGF Yield’s Lantern Walk. For the second year, we were able to collaborate with friends from all over the north side of Springfield to shine a light on issues of pedestrian safety. The walking route began at Historic Lafayette Park and took pedestrians on a 1.5 mile moonlit tour of C-Street. We were thrilled to see so many smiling faces roaming the streets of the north side. Nothing makes us happier than being able to partner with all of our nearby friends. We in Woodland Heights hold on to a belief that we’re walking towards a brighter future, and that the way forward is together.
