A few weeks ago we hosted a little party at Clif Bar & Company to benefit the Access Fund—the Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival. It was an evening of controlled chaos. To start with, we had Timmy O’Neill—legendary climber, filmmaker, drummer, passion monger and rabble rouser—emceeing the event. And because we love a small dose of healthy competition, we had Ro-Sham-Bo… and Foos Ball… and lots of prizes. Oh, and of course, a taco truck to keep us energized. Anyhoo, the purpose of the night was to raise awareness and funds for our long-time partner, the Access Fund through…

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Eric's back with a few words on his final days in the Big Easy and wrapping up a week with In Good Company. Well, we just finished our work here in New Orleans for In Good Company and I have to admit it—exhaustion's setting in. Five emotional days of home construction, garden building, partying through the wee hours and just generally running ourselves far past “E” each day have really put our bodies and minds to the test. As fatigued as we all are, though, everyone is in great spirits—a testament to the strength of our incredible group and their…

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A few days late but without further ado, a recap of Day 4 of In Good Company. Eric fills us in on his adventures in the Bayou and a few (more) reasons why New Orleans is such an amazing place... Well, if you’ve read any of the previous New Orleans blogs from earlier this week, you are well aware that there is a group of us down here in the Crescent City building a house for a family displaced by hurricane Katrina. We've been working hard. Really hard. And one thing I have truly learned so far is…that I am…

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In Good Company. Day 3. New Orleans. Today was a lot of hard work in the garden and in Alice Cousin's house. The storm stayed away for the most part with a bit of rain drizzle and quit a bit of wind. I learned a lot from the Farm and Garden program in the Lower 9th ward today. They design and implement all of their designs and projects with full input from the community. Program directors and volunteer Architects DO NOT impose their ideas on the land for the community. The local residents design the gardens to match what they…

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Day 2 from New Orleans. The work continues... And without further ado, some reflections from Katherine I sit with the soft hum of my laptop and steady whisper of the wind here in New Orleans. It's day 2 of In Good Company—a partnership of businesses joining together to make a positive difference through hands-on action. Today, we split into two groups. Some of us went to help build a community garden and some went to help build a home for Alice Cousin, a 79-year old New Orleans native who also cares for her two grand-daughters, one of whom has Cerebral…

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