Division volunteer Catrena Moore a recipient of a Governor’s Youth Volunteer Service Award
In a ceremony held at the Dover Downs Hotel on April 21, 2015, Delaware Gov. Jack Markell and first lady Carla Markell recognized 10 individuals and four groups as recipients of the 2015 Governor’s Youth Volunteer Service Awards. One of the recipients, Dover High School senior and Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs volunteer Catrena Moore, was honored for the more than 100 hours that she contributed as a horticulturalist working on the redesign of the public garden at Woodburn, the governor’s official residence in Dover. Woodburn’s garden is managed by the division’s Horticulture Team.
As a participant in the plant-sciences technical pathway at Dover High, Moore was interested in honing her skills in horticulture and gaining experience in her chosen field. After initiating contact with the division, she began volunteer service with the Horticulture Team in July 2014, participating in the installation of the re-designed Woodburn garden until it officially opened to the public on Oct. 23, 2014.
By all accounts, her contributions to the project were outstanding. According to Rachel Wootten, the division’s volunteer coordinator, “Every task assigned to Catrena, whether it be mulching, installing perennials or bulbs, or simply watering plants was done with a sense of pride.” Thomas Ratay, who was at the time a member of the Horticulture Team noted that Moore was “extremely helpful and her eye for detail is impeccable. … She saved valuable man hours by completing large portions of the bulb installation, along with constantly and consistently pulling weeds and watering plants. With her help we were able to complete the entire installation of the garden on time.” Summing up Moore’s service, division director Tim Slavin noted that she “was a star among our many volunteers. She was reliable, dependable, and professional, and her presence added much value to our Woodburn Public Garden project.”
Moore continues to volunteer two days a week in helping to care for the Woodburn garden. After her upcoming graduation from Dover High in June 2015, she will attend Delaware State University, majoring in horticulture.