By Dana Santos, MPH/MA, Communications & Outreach
Each year, on President’s Day, Forward Pinellas participates in an in-service day. This day provides the chance for staff to engage with the community in a meaningful way and to take advantage of unique learning opportunities. Staff spends the day volunteering on projects that are meaningful to the community and align with our agency’s mission and goals. Past projects have included working with Habitat for Humanity, Hope Villages of America, the City of Oldsmar on waterfront park clean up, and the Salty Soul Foundation on beach cleanup efforts.
This year, Forward Pinellas worked with the St. Pete Bike Co-op. The Co-op is a volunteer run, local non-profit organization that provides the community a place to access the tools and supplies necessary for bike repairs and maintenance. They offer bicycle related education programs to promote bicycle safety. In addition, donated bikes are restored to be given away to those in need. The Co-op gave away 230 bikes in 2023 as part of their bike donation program!
Forward Pinellas staff emptied out a large storage container that needed deep cleaning due to a roof leak, applied a sealant to prevent future leaks, and then reloaded the container. Staff also helped clean up the shop and learned the process of stripping and restoring the donated bikes.
Also on this day, Forward Pinellas was invited by the Property Appraiser’s Office to educate its staff on the role Forward Pinellas plays in the county for their In-Service Day training event. Executive Director Whit Blanton and Principal Planner Jared Austin provided a presentation highlighting our current work including the newly released Live Local Dashboard, the Multimodal Accessibility (MAX) Index, and the Target Employment Industrial Lands Study (TEILS) Update.
