MVP lends a helping hand to several community projects
MADISON – An overcast sky blocked the sun. The forest canopy did the same as well as provide cover from a smattering of rain. Nothing could stop the humidity, but likewise nothing slowed volunteers as they prepared the Mill Creek Reserve for a planned fall opening.
The reserve’s trail, whose Balch Road Entrance is off a gravel access road directly across from Gray Cemetery, is currently closed to the public. There will be a grand opening with Madison Greenways & Trails, the City of Madison and Madison Visionary Partners (MVP) upon completion.
The volunteers – provided through Madison Greenway & Trails – were working the trail site Saturday as part of the twoday “Serve Madison’’ program organized by MVP.
“Our mission is to connect people who care with initiatives that increase the quality of life for the residents of Madison,” MVP Executive Director Christina Hearne said. “And so, one of the ways we were able to do that is to connect people with ways to serve within Madison.’’ Here are some photos from the Serve Madison weekend. Courtesy of MVP
MVP was formed in 2025. The event is in its second year.
“We essentially partner and work with different organizations, local nonprofits, specifically here in Madison,’’ Hearne said. “While we have lots of great opportunities to serve in the greater area, we’ve got lots of opportunities right here in our backyard.”
Along with Madison Gateways & Trails, other organizations participating in the event include MVP Adopt-a-Spot, Next Step Farms, Kids to Love, Madison Beautification & Tree Board, Discovery Middle School, Rainbow Elementary School, and Madison Library.
“We’ve got a very diverse community,” Hearne said. “We’ve got high school students who need hours, we’ve got retired people that have time to give, we’ve got families that want to serve together. So, we try to offer different opportunities right here in their backyard.”
Hearne said MVP provides volunteers for local groups and businesses by request.
“Councilman Kenneth Jackson might email and say, ‘Hey, this area is looking pretty rough. We could use a cleanup crew.’ So, we’ll email the schools, we’ll push the word out to our newsletter and try to get a group there to help pick up trash and make it look a little nicer,” she said.
Other greenways and trails in Madison:
• Beaverdam Swamp Boardwalk
• Bradford Creek Greenway
• County Line Bike & Pedestrian Path
• Garner St. Bike & Pedestrian Path
• Hughes Rd. Bike & Pedestrian Path
• Indian Creek Greenway • Mill Creek Greenway
• Oakland Springs Branch Greenway
• Rainbow Mountain Preserve
• Wall Triana Hwy Bike & Pedestrian Path For site maps, visit madisonal.gov. Madison Greenways & Trails is preparing the trailhead in partnership with North Alabama Land Trust which designs the trails.
“We’re just an all-volunteer organization,’’ Madison Greenways & Trails Vice President Jim Chamberlain said. “We’re out here just to help our community.’’
The group’s president, Michael Goodman, explained that the reserve’s main trail Providence and two more in the system – Gillespie and Balch – will be family friendly as opposed to Rainbow Mountain, which was the city’s first preserve.
“Rainbow Mountain is hilly and rocky,’’ he said. “When you go out there, it’s at times challenging. This is not going to be. This is flat – dirt, but no rocks. My kind of trail. I keep saying, ‘Yeah, I’m gonna push my one-year-old granddaughter in a stroller here.”
So far, a kiosk at what will be the entrance and a cedar bridge – made with previously felled trees – that spans a gully have been built at the site. When finished, the roughly one-mile trail will be a series of loops.
According to Hearne, “We try to help people find something that might interest them. Hopefully they’ll find something that they like and might be able to continue volunteering.
“For example, from last year when we did this, I think there’s like five or six new volunteers that now regularly volunteer with (participating organizations).”
