Diamond Vogel, through the Paint Iowa Beautiful Project, awarded Friends of Shimek a grant of 5 gallons of stain in 2020. The stain was to be used to refurbish picnic table tops and benches, beginning with those in the Shimek Forest Lick Creek Unit. The stain was awarded to Ringo Covert, President of Friends of Shimek, by Nick Wittenmyer at the Diamond Vogel Store in Burlington. Due to the COVID pandemic, work was delayed, seeking a way to safely accomplish the task. Under the leadership of Patrick Thomas, DNR Technician at Shimek, DNR staff began the project by pressure washing the tables to remove soil and mold from the old but sturdy tables. A test project showed that one gallon of stain would only cover a few tables!! The wood had been untreated for so long that it is very absorbent. With sufficient tables cleaned for the stain available, on the Iowa DNR Parks Volunteer Day, Patrick and a group of five Volunteers completed the staining of tables until all five gallons of awarded stain and three additional gallons purchased by DNR were used. The result was tables that look like new! A remarkable transformation occurs and hopefully the useful life of the tables will be extended. There are many more tables yet to do! Hopefully with volunteers, DNR staff, and additional stain, more can be refurbished next year.
The first step of the Paint Iowa Beautiful Project at Shimek Forest was to pressure wash the tables. On the DNR State Parks Volunteer Day, a small group of volunteers, following COVID guidance, worked with DNR Technician Patrick Thomas to stain the tables. Volunteers shown, left to right, Marvin and Doris Thomas, Bruce Huddleston, Jo Watson and Marsha Achenbach assisted Patrick with the staining.
The results of pressure washing tables and applying Diamond-Vogel stain is spectacular! The tables look new again though they are well over 20 years old, thanks to the Paint Iowa Beautiful Project at Shimek Forest. This project has only done a small number of the tables, but more are planned in the future, when funds are available.
on behalf of Friends of Shimek
Lora Conrad, Secretary
Kathy, Editor
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