Park advocate getting her wild place in sun

By Sandra Thomas-Staff writer

Not long before her death from a brain tumour in September, 2002, Donna Tilley went to a meeting with the parks board about maintenance at Everett Crowley Park, even though she couldn't walk without assistance.

Vince Verlaan, her close friend and fellow park advocate, helped Tilley into the meeting that day because he knew the East Side wilderness park was so important to her. "She thought the city should be taking better care of the park."

That dedication is being recognized this weekend as the first spades hit the dirt for the Donna Tilley Memorial Garden, near the park's eastern lookout. The event was organized to coincide with Earth Day celebrations, April 24.

Verlaan met Tilley in 1993, when Tilley was attempting to drum up volunteers and raise awareness about the chunk of urban wilderness that had been the site of the city's main landfill-the Kerr Road Dump-from 1944 to 1966. The 40-hectare property is bounded on the east by Matheson Avenue, on the north by Maquinna and 62nd avenues, on the west by Kerr Avenue and on the south by Southeast Marine Drive.

In the early 1980s, Tilley and others pressured the city and parks board to have the property officially designated as a park. That dedication finally took place in 1987 and the park, the fourth largest in the city, was named after Everett Crowley, owner of Avalon Dairy.

Verlaan said Tilley's work didn't end there. She continued to fight to have the land returned to its natural state, helping found the Everett Crowley Park Committee in 1996 with the goal of retaining the park as an urban wilderness.

Tilley's 21-year-old son Michael, said his mother, who was 53 when she died, would be happy with the memorial garden. "It's a good way to show appreciation for what she did and what can be done in the park."

Michael said his mother, who worked in the cancer research department at St. Paul's Hospital until she was first diagnosed with the brain tumour at age 33, frequented the park for as long as he can remember. "We lived right behind it and it was really like our backyard," said Michael, who joined the Everett Crowley Park Committee a year ago. "Mom loved that park."

The memorial garden project begins this weekend with the planting of 15 large trees, and will continue all summer with the addition of native plants-especially those that encourage birds and butterflies-removal of invasive plants and installation of a park bench and plaque.

While the garden isn't huge, the committee wants it to be a showcase for the rest of the park, said Verlaan, who credits Tilley for the parks board's decision to include $60,000 for management and planning of the park in its 2002-2005 budget. "This one per cent will be dedicated to showing a vision of what this park can be." So far, the group has raised about $3,000 towards the cost of the garden. A professional landscaper has volunteered his time in designing the project, but Verlaan said the committee can still use more cash donations or hands-on volunteers. E-mail Verlaan at vlverlaan@shaw.ca to donate cash or time.