Annual Day of Caring & Sharing draws more than 500 volunteers

May 11—CUMBERLAND — Ed Mullaney and Ginny Decker had just finished a lunch break at Constitution Park and were headed to unload tools from a van as they talked of Friday's tiring yet rewarding work.

At ages 80 and 79, respectively, the Let's Beautify Cumberland! co-chairs helped facilitate the 27th Annual Day of Caring & Sharing.

The event included more than 500 volunteers who worked at 52 sites across the city.

They planted flowers, spread mulch, painted walls, cleaned and installed 125 American flags.

"It's a feel good day," Mullaney said and talked of volunteers, including individuals, groups from area companies and organizations, the Garden Club of Cumberland, Calvary Christian Academy students and government employees who teamed to improve the city.

"I can't say enough about the city leadership, too," Mullaney said of support to improve Cumberland. "They've been superb."

As a retired teacher, Mullaney was especially moved to see roughly 15 Allegany County Public Schools employees working at Giarritta Park across from City Hall around 3 p.m. Friday.

The group could have gone home after work but instead took time to help the community, he said.

"It's above and beyond the call of duty," Mullaney said.

'Hands dirty for us'

This was the first year for the Jane Gates Heritage House, a nonprofit museum and community center, to participate in the event.

Sukh Gates, president of the Jane Gates Heritage Foundation, said Mullaney provided bricks, mulch and soil for the property.

"He's a wonderful person," Gates said. "Very generous, very kind."

IBM sent roughly 15 employees to help improve the Jane Gates property on Greene Street.

"They've been working diligently since 8:30 a.m. this morning," she said of volunteers who weeded and planted in the pollinator garden behind the house.

"It's really amazing to me that they wanted to come here and get their hands dirty for us," Gates said.

'She was very committed'

Gates stood surrounded by plants and recalled the late Sherry Frick, coordinator for the Master Gardener Program at the University of Maryland Extension Office, who helped design and build the educational garden behind the Jane Gates house in 2020.

Frick, who died in 2022, had identified soapwort on the property that unlocked clues into the life of Jane Gates, a previously enslaved woman and laundress who bought the residence in 1871.

"(Frick) is the reason we have all this," Gates said of the garden. "She was very committed to what we were doing."

UMD Extension Office master gardener Donna Gates, no relation to Sukh, worked among the volunteers and talked of how soapwort was used.

The plant was likely brought to the U.S. by European settlers who mixed it with water for a sudsy solution.

"People used a lot of plants," she said. "Some were medicinal plants, some were for eating."

'Part of our culture'

Lesa Edwards, IBM's Rocket Center hiring talent manager for the Client Innovation Center, has volunteered for the Day of Caring and Sharing for five years.

"It's important," she said. "We want to show that IBM is part of the community."

Tricia Ryan is an IBM contract manager in cybersecurity services.

"(Volunteering) is part of our culture, giving back to our local communities because IBM is global-wide," she said.

IBM contract management specialist Natasha Kirby and Christina Puffenbarger, a financial analyst at the company, moved roughly 360 bricks, planned for a future driveway at the Jane Gates house, in about an hour Friday morning.

"It always feels good to be able to help someone," Kirby said.

'A product of us'

Terri Jessie is a community engagement specialist for County United Way, which serves Allegany and Garrett counties in Maryland, and Mineral and Hampshire counties in West Virginia.

The organization worked with Let's Beautify Cumberland! to host Friday's Caring and Sharing event.

"These projects range from the planters at Canal Place to George Washington Headquarters, from Jaycee Field to Mason's Sports Complex Playground," Jessie said.

The event was made possible by sponsors, including Columbia Gas, CSX, Rocky Gap Casino & Resort, LaVale Veterinary Hospital, Subway, UPMC Western Maryland, First People's Community Credit Union, Chessie Federal Credit Union, Pepsi and Café Mark.

"It is truly amazing to see so many people come together to make Cumberland a better place," Jessie said. "We are indeed products of our environment. This event has made our environment a product of us."

Teresa McMinn is a reporter for the Cumberland Times-News. She can be reached at 304-639-2371 or tmcminn@times-news.com.