Human Force visits Atalanta Project by Marcella Lunt
We had an amazing time with the Human Force volunteers who traveled to Crestone, Colorado to help at Atalanta! Six international volunteers traveled from Canada and were joined by two local volunteers. Volunteers stayed at the nearby Baca Grande Stables and made daily trips to the cooperative garden at Atalanta.Â
The largest project to complete was the stuccoing of the cold storage shed off the back of the straw bale garden building and greenhouse. The volunteers worked hard in the Colorado sun to cover the bales with two coats of a lime/cement stucco, preserving the building and creating a space to store root vegetables at a consistent temperature.
The volunteers also created beautiful welcome signs for the garden, a bat box, a mural to greet visitors, volunteers and members, and spent time weeding, watering and planting in the garden. Daily chores included collecting eggs and feeding the goats.Â
During their stay in Crestone we explored some of the local attractions and activities taking a morning trail ride and visiting two hot springs swimming pools, the Crestone Museum, and the Great Sand Dunes National Park. Cultural trips were made to watch the Jicarilla Apache Dancers perform at the Sand Dunes, a visit to the Taos Pueblo, a trip to a local Buddist stupa and a visit and lunch at the Haidakhandi Universal Ashram. We also enjoyed lunch with members of the Earth Art Institute and Eco Village at the Atalanta garden where we discussed local issues unique to the San Luis Valley, sustainability, the Eco Village network and Earth Art and Atalanta’s roles in the local and global communities.Â
We are deeply grateful for the gift of friendships made and enriching experiences. Â
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Photos by Solen Lee
