LVC to Help Restore Historic Ruins of Iron Ore Refinery

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Photo of Historic North Lebanon Furnaces

ANNVILLE, PA (09/03/2010)(readMedia)-- Lebanon Valley College students, faculty, staff, and alumni will gather with park trustees for a day of service at Coleman Park, 1400 West Maple Street, Lebanon, on Saturday, Sept. 25 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The park is the site of an historic iron ore refinery, now in ruins. Volunteers will clear a Victorian-era garden, construct a bat house, develop a butterfly garden, paint, maintain hiking trails, and complete park clean-up projects.

The North Lebanon Furnaces, constructed at the southern end of the present-day park in the 1840s, operated through the 1920s. Significant restoration work was done earlier this year, but park trustees have asked the LVC community to continue the efforts.

Volunteers will weed and clear an area around the remains of the gardens of the John Penn Brock mansion on the western end of the park. In 1936, the Coleman and Brock families deeded five mansions and much of the 100 acres that constitute the park to the city. The five mansions were demolished by 1961 due to high maintenance expenses.

In addition to restoration work, volunteers will help to control the population of bats on the grounds by building bat houses.

"Bats are a helpful member of the ecosystem in that they help to reduce the mosquito and gnat populations," said Fred Yeagley, a park trustee who coordinated work projects for the day. "However, because we don't want the bats living in our pavilions, we'll build bat houses, a proven solution in use by many other parks similar to ours."

"We're hoping for strong representation from the many organizations within the College community," said Rev. Paul Fullmer, LVC's chaplain, who also serves as the College's director of community service and volunteerism. "Members of the ice hockey team and Alpha Phi Omega have already committed to joining us, as have several other academic departments and service organizations."

LVC alumni and emeriti who would like to participate on Sept. 25 are welcome to contact Chaplain Fullmer in the Office of Community Service and Volunteerism at (717) 867-6135 or fullmer@lvc.edu by Monday, Sept. 20. Volunteers should bring a pair of sturdy work gloves, a sack lunch, and a water bottle and expect to engage in strenuous physical activity. Clothing should cover arms and legs; hats are strongly suggested. The College-wide project is part of a series of programs supporting LVC's goal to "prepare students for a life of service to others," a key tenet of the College's mission statement.