Eleven companies and their employees, who offered their rental expertise, equipment and sweat labor, successfully completed the second project of the Community Impact Program at the Green Valley Ranch East Park in Denver on Wednesday, July 21. This project was a joint effort of the ARA Foundation and The Toro Company Foundation.
Colorado rental businesses and manufacturers that participated in the daylong event included:
- • All Purpose Rental & Sales, Greeley
- • Arvada Rent-Alls, Arvada
- • Aspen Rent-All, Basalt
- • Chair Rental, Sheridan
- • Ditch Witch of the Rockies, Commerce City
- • Best Rental, Fort Collins
- • Quipli, Colorado Springs
- • Rusty Rental, Frederick
- • Toro, Aurora
- • Ventrac, Denver
- • Wanco, Arvada
In addition, the ARA of Colorado offered lunch for all participants and the Denver Parks and Recreation Department prepped the site.
The partnership of the ARA Foundation, the Toro Company Foundation, the ARA of Colorado and the Denver Parks and Recreation Department proved to be a dynamic combination.
“We all came together to restore the Green Valley Ranch East Park, which included restoring a baseball field, laying sod, repairing fencing, painting backstops, spreading mulch and much more,” says Marcy Wright, ARA Foundation executive director.
“This effort was made possible because of the $20,000 donation from the ARA Foundation and The Toro Company Foundation and the equipment donations from local rental companies in the Denver area. The park looked beautiful at the end of the day and everyone had a huge sense of accomplishment. We were all glad that we could give back to the communities that the park serves,” she says.
ARA of Colorado President Jeff Jackson, owner, All Purpose Rental & Sales, is glad he was able to take part. He donated both his time and equipment — a walk-behind and ride-on aerator — to the event.
“The Denver Parks staff did a great job of prepping the area for us. We had plenty of people who took part. Everyone had a good time and, in the process, we made a difference for our community. The ARA Foundation and The Toro Company Foundation should be commended for launching this program and having the second project take place here in our state,” he says.
The Community Impact Program, which kicked off with its inaugural event in Ohio during June, involves both foundations partnering with local nonprofit organizations to coordinate community service projects across the country. The purpose of the program is twofold: to allow those in the rental industry an opportunity to give back to their community as well as build public awareness and demonstrate the advantages of rental.
Two more projects are planned for this year and will involve the collaboration of American Rental Association (ARA) members, ARA state associations, and Toro and Ditch Witch representatives in each of the select locations who will source donations and volunteers to work on the project. The next event is scheduled for Sept. 14-15 at Fort Snelling State Park in St. Paul, Minn. For more information or to volunteer, contact April Kleckner, ARA Foundation program manager, at 800-334-2177, ext. 234.