“Joan was already working down there regularly so I joined her on her spot. Together, we do the weeding, planting, tending to the paths and planting. It’s now our spot!
“We can go down there whenever we like, and just work away and spend the whole time chatting. Joan is another retired woman, so we spend a lot of time together!”
Five years of hard work has transformed the area, says Anne.
“We know every inch of the area. We’re both incredibly proud of our spot and have planted dozens of native plants there. We nurture them throughout all the seasons. It’s a lot of fun.”
Even though the work involves scaling steep banks, this doesn’t stop Anne. She does it for the friendship and to make the city a better place.
“I think Joan keeps me going – it’s such a good friendship that’s developed. Sometimes we need to hold onto each other on the steep bits because we carry around our tools,” she laughs.