“We never could have gotten so much done in one day without you,” said Pam Smith, Farmers Branch’s Park Landscape Manager. "It was an awesome workday. You were great."

Led by Karen O’Rear, Parish’s Community Service Director, Parish students have done everything from putting down mulch in the park to planting championship and specialized roses. It’s all part of a project to transform a portion of the park into a rose garden that will test for environmentally friendly plants that don’t require large amounts of water to be maintained.

Texas A&M along with the Dallas County Master Gardeners have helped develop this environmental project at Gussie Park off Valley View Road a couple miles west of the Parish campus. Parish provided much-needed labor.

The project is an on-going work effort for Parish and the Farmers Branch Parks and Recreation Department. The official grand opening of the park will be May 17 when the roses are expected to be in bloom. It will be held in conjunction with the Fishin' Fun with stocked ponds and all registered youth will receive a rose plant.