It was a privilege to witness and be part of the neighborhood initiative of rose garden pruning, weeding, and cleanup at Jeffrey Fontana Park on McAbee Rd & Golden Oak Way. Thanks to the partnership of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association (MFPA), Santa Clara County Association of Realtors (SCCAOR), and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints volunteers, they were able to complete the task beautifully and on time.
As someone who does not garden due to a lack of a green thumb, I was impressed with everyone’s ability to prune rose bushes and lay mulch with enthusiasm to make the park beautiful and ready for spring. As I had a chance to meet and speak with a few of the leaders, Kelly Sheppard and Linda Wilson, I was humbled by their love and passion for their project and their hard work to make their neighborhood beautiful and welcoming.
It was my absolute pleasure to see the neighbors and volunteers coming and working together to beautify our neighborhood-shared park. I am looking forward to many more such events.
Arjun Batra District 10 Councilmember
*Councilmember Batra is the first Indian-American on the council since Ash Kalra, now a member of the California Assembly. Batra, an engineer, was a manager at Intel and IBM.
A big THANKS to Michele LaPlante, our Martin-Fontana Parks Association (MFPA) Volunteer Coordinator, and Michele Dexter, the Community Relations representative from the District 10 City Council office for their coordination on a successful “Spring Cleaning” Saturday May 7th at the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden and the California native plant garden on McAbee Road.
Volunteers from the Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS met for their annual spring clean up of the rose garden, as well as some weeding and pruning on the east side of McAbee at the CA native garden. They were joined by a large group of volunteers from the Church of the Latter Day Saints. The volunteers filled a large Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services (PRNS) dump truck twice, with green waste from weeding, pruning, and trimming the trees and plants in the gardens.
Thanks also, to the PRNS Volunteer Unit, who came out Saturday morning with all the tools and wheelbarrows needed for the cleanup effort.
PRNS Volunteer Coordinator, Sue Bowling, helped with the sign in and MFPA member Chris Reed was there to give guidance in the native garden work area. Together, all the helping hands put in a morning of great effort to create two garden spaces that all the park community can enjoy.
*Thanks to our new MFPA photographer, Jack Wollenweber, a Bellarmine College Preparatory school student for all the nice photos.
This Saturday volunteers from the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors will be meeting at the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden to spruce up the area and feed the roses. We would love to see you join them Saturday, July 10 at 8:15 am to pitch in and lend a hand!
Linda Wilson and Kelly Shepherd will be signing in the volunteers, and Lalo from Parks, Recreation and Neighbor Services (PRNS) will have all the tools, gloves, and other necessary equipment on hand. Ice cold water and healthy snacks will be provided. A canopy will be set up to provide some shade for anyone who wants to take a break.
Volunteers from the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors meet twice yearly to work in the memorial garden and have helped the Martin-Fontana Parks Association keep this area as a fitting memorial for Officer Jeffrey Fontana who was killed in a nearby neighborhood nearly 20 years ago.
On Saturday the 25th of Jan, with the help of over thirtyvolunteers and a their hard work, the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden was pruned and weeded. Members of the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors (SCCAOR) provided most of the muscle along with other volunteers. Now the roses are all set for some beautiful blooms this coming season.
Linda Wilson, the President of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association, provided 10 bags of mulch and some rose food. MFPA member, Rosy Bowring brought along 2 dozen assorted doughnuts to feed the troops. Adopt-a-Park’s Sue Bowling was there with the Adopt-a-Park trailer and work supplies. Thanks also to Mollie Tobias, City of San Jose’s Program Manager for Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services for setting this all up.
Let us not forget who wasn’t there, Patrick Pizzo.
Pat was always there to show everybody how the trimming was done. We will miss seeing his smiling face and having him show us how to trim a rose bush Things just weren’t the same with out him being there.
A photo display of Pat was provided by MFPA member, Sunny Wagstaff, showing his many years of service and dedication in making our parks more beautiful with native plants.
Patrick Pizzo, a long time member and guiding light of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association passed away on the 2nd of January 2020 at the age of 75. If you look around our two parks, you will see many examples of his handy work. Pat was the brains & brawn behind all the native plant islands located in Jeffrey Fontana Park. His most extensive creation was the 5 Islands Project near Meridian Ave.
Six years ago, Officer Fontana’s Memorial Rose Garden was adopted by the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors . They stepped up with grants to fund the upkeep of the garden on McAbee Road, and volunteered to work in the garden twice a year to help keep it maintained.
Saturday, May 25, the Realtors joined Martin Fontana Parks Association volunteers and two employees of San Jose’s Adopt-a-Park program, to weed, trim trees, remove plum tree suckers, and spread rose fertilizer and mulch over Jeffrey’s garden.
Linda Wilson signing folks in
Matt Mahan is digging it
Linda Opp feeding the roses
Pat Pizzo trys to move the boulder
Weeding & trimming
MFPA extends a big ‘THANKS” and job well done to Realtors Scott Raley, Doug Goss, Frank Cancilla and Neil Collins, assisted by MFPA members Linda Opp, Linda Wilson, Patrick Pizzo, Matt Mahan, and Chris Chen.
Thanks also to San Jose’s Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services for providing all the equipment needed.
*Wayne Opp, our new official MFPA photographer, aptly recorded the action.
Wayne Opp
Don’t forget, as you pass by Fontana Park on McAbee Road, to stop and smell the roses and appreciate the beauty of the garden.
President Rod Carpenter called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm last Wednesday, Feb. 13, addressing an overflow audience of members and guests.
Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services Deputy Director, Justin Long, summarized some of the changes that are being made to improve the efficiency of park maintenance. A new “Activate San Jose” plan will be the new parks’ guiding document and should be in available to the public in June for community review. MFPA will alert our members when it is presented.
Mr. Long and Dan Greeley, our Maintenance District Supervisor, spoke about the rodent problem affecting many San Jose parks, including ours. They outlined the action that PRNS will be taking to alleviate the problem, and then answered questions from the floor.
Outgoing President, Rod Carpenter highlighted the achievements of MFPA during his two-year tenure:
Completion of the native plant Five Islands Project
Construction of the “Surf Shack” tool shed
Repair of the Meridian fence at TJ Martin Park
The Planting of over fifty new trees in both parks
Completion of the “Beautility” Water Vault Painting project
Partnership with PRNS Adopt-a-Park Program and Santa Clara County Association of Realtors, (SCCAOR), to maintain existing projects like the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden
Perhaps the most significant achievement of Rod’s term was the completion of the “Right of Entry” agreement with PRNS allowing MFPA to hire qualified contractors to work in the parks on MFPA projects!
Outgoing Secretary, Rich Grialou was honored with the “President’s Award” and received a plaque in appreciation of his contributions to MFPA.
President Rod Carpenterwas presented with a plaque honoring his dedication and determination to oversee the accomplishments of the last two years.
The new Board of Directors goals for the next year include:
Ongoing maintenance projects with PRNS Adopt-a-Park and SCCAOR
The annual Heart of the Park Celebration on May 18, 2019
Continued collaboration with PRNS and the City to improve our parks
Mulch was spread, weeding was done, along with trimming, and fertilizing. Tools were provided by MFPA and San Jose’s Parks, Recreation, & Neighborhood Services. Refreshments were provided by the Martin-Fontana Parks Association. Thanks to Orchard Supply Hardware for their donation of 15 bags of mulch. They were put to good use in the garden.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
*A special thanks to our MFPA Photographer, Susan Mosher and thanks also to Kris Myers for her photos.
Held at The Villas Clubhouse, light hors d’oeuvres were served along with wine and other beverages .
Volunteer bartenders Robert Braunstein & Greg Caillat
Awards were presented along with MFPA pins to the 55 volunteers attending
MFPA President Rod Carpenter presents MFPA Project Director Larry Sasscer his Volunteer of the Year award for his outstanding service
MFPA President Rod Carpenter presents SCCAOR Director Frank Cancilla with an award in appreciation for their ongoing service and support
Present for the event were San Jose Parks Commission Chairman, Rudy Flores and his wife Denise, and District 10 Councilman, Johnny Khamis
The MFPA Board of Directors all received Elephants from MFPA President Rod Carpenter. In case you were wondering, Rod’s favorite saying is “You can eat an elephant if you take a bite at a time“.
Gifts for the MFPA Board
Board members Linda Opp, Robert Braunstein, Richard Grialou, & Rod Carpenter
Richard Zahner helps Linda Wilson unwrap her gift
Surprise! It’s an Elephant!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
*Thanks to our wonderful photographer, Susan Mosher, for such great photos!
Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden clean up Crew
Thanks to the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors (SCCAOR), who came out in force last Saturday on May 20th, the Memorial Garden looks better than ever. They were assisted by five members of the Pioneer High School Key Club, who are mentored by the Kiwanis, and members of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
It’s been five years since the SCCAOR Foundation adopted the Memorial Garden and pledged more than $4000 toward its upkeep, besides volunteering their time and hard work each spring and fall to maintain the beautiful red and white theme. Chairman of the group is Frank Cancilla
The Martin-Fontana Parks Association greatly appreciates SCCAOR’s funding and volunteerism for the last five years. We salute their members who contribute so much to the lasting beauty of the garden that was planted to memorialize Officer Jeffrey Fontana. Officer Fontana was killed in the line of duty while patrolling our neighborhoods.
*Photos provided by Nancy Kalashian. Thanks, Nancy.
MARTIN-FONTANA PARKS ASSOCIATION 