Blog: City Blog

Horticulture Crew Lends a Hand to Bicyclist on Third Creek Greenway

Horticulture Service Worker Joe Collins repairs a bicycle for a Third Creek Greenway patron with the assistance of co-worker Jeremy Mitchell.

Some Horticulture crew members in the City’s Public Service Department were able to help a greenways patron Wednesday while doing work on Third Creek Greenway.

As Joe Collins, Jeremy Mitchell, Eddie McDonald, and Aaron Farmer were working to remove invasive exotic plants, they happened to notice a gentleman carrying his damaged bicycle along the greenway.

The back wheel was broken. In the afternoon’s 80-degree weather, the bicyclist was fatigued and sweating.

“This gentleman was struggling since had just carried his bike up a hill and he still a long way to go—you could just tell he was tired,” said Joe Collins, Horticulture Service Worker for the City. “We don’t send anyone away that needs help—you have to step up when you can!”

Collins happened to have a bike repair kit on him, and volunteered to make a quick fix. The other crew members assisted as Collins made the repair.

Minutes later, the bicyclist was on his way and the crew went back to clearing brush.

“Joe’s somebody who’s always helping others, so I wasn’t surprised to hear about this,” said Mark Wagner, Horticulture Manager. “Our crew members are quality people and they’re always looking out to help their fellow citizens.”

The crew had been working to remove Common Buckthorn trees, a small tree species originating from Europe that has been identified as an invasive exotic because it leafs out before native plants.

Without crews consistently clearing these trees, they would outgrow plants and trees that are native to the East Tennessee region.

With that in mind, one might say that this particular Horticulture crew completed an afternoon of good deeds on Third Creek Greenway yesterday.

For their efforts, a bicyclist and some local vegetation got to breathe a little easier.

Posted by On 22 February, 2018 at 3:21 PM