Local Girl Scout Cadette Troop Helps Beautify Leik Grove

This year our Girl Scout Cadette troop decided to earn our Silver Award. For this award we had to complete a 50 hour take action project. During our search to find the right place, we were directed to Leik Grove by Neil Brown - the Parks and Recreations director for the City of Portland. Leik Grove is a beautiful area located near the Bouge Flats that needed a little tlc. It’s a place that has 13 small windows or gardens that are all Michiganian history based. For every window there is a different theme or experience that is presented on a sign. These signs are intended to invite you to ponder and attract your interest. Our troop worked on one window called the Indian Council Area. We moved a lot of plants, but also pruned and added more vibrant Michiganian bushes, flowers and other plants.

Ed Leik created Leik Grove in 1995 as a memorial to his parents, but it was originally his brother, Charles’ idea. It started as a project to plant and preserve trees and help the earth. We wanted to help that dream. We took time trying to figure out how to bring the place to life and make it how we thought it would have looked when the Indians lived there. We made dream-catchers to help add to the cultural experience of the Indian Council Area. It also helps people to understand the local (and non-local) myths surrounding dream-catchers. We added a medicine wheel informational plaque as a tribute to the native americans from the area too. But, overall, we wanted to keep the history that Portland has alive and bright for everyone to see.

If you have some spare time to help maintain the Grove or would like to adopt a themed section (window) you may contact Pamela Minkley via email, uwakeup@gmail.com.