The Dalles Beautification Committee and the The Dalles Lions Club Foundation have been working together to restore the Vogt Fountain in the Veterans Garden at Sorosis Park. Major work has been completed, and donations are now being sought for paving stones to create a circular walkway through the rose garden. Pictured are, left to right, Lion Jim Bishop, Beautification members Brenda Coats and Bill Lennox, and Lion Jim Wilcox.
Bill Lennox of The Dalles Beautification Committee holds a brass lion in place at the historic fountain in the Veterans Rose Garden at Sorosis Park. Repairs to the fountain will be complete as soon as the fixtures are bolted into place.
The Dalles Beautification Committee and the The Dalles Lions Club Foundation have been working together to restore the Vogt Fountain in the Veterans Garden at Sorosis Park. Major work has been completed, and donations are now being sought for paving stones to create a circular walkway through the rose garden. Pictured are, left to right, Lion Jim Bishop, Beautification members Brenda Coats and Bill Lennox, and Lion Jim Wilcox.
Mark B. Gibson photo
Bill Lennox of The Dalles Beautification Committee holds a brass lion in place at the historic fountain in the Veterans Rose Garden at Sorosis Park. Repairs to the fountain will be complete as soon as the fixtures are bolted into place.
Mark B. Gibson photo
Proposed paver walkways will create a circular path and exits. The red fountain portion is completed.
The Dalles Beautification Committee and the Lions Club have joined forces in the restoration of the Vogt Fountain at Sorosis Park, which is nearly complete.
The fountain has new water pipes, lights and pump, as well as new paving stones around the fountain. Four cast bronze lion heads are in hand and will soon be installed. The fountain heads are virtually the same as the original heads in place when the fountain was in use at the west entrance to downtown The Dalles, “They look exactly like the pictures we have,” said Lennox. The heads will be mounted via holes drilled from inside a small vault inside the fountain, he added. “It’s a one guy job. One small guy,” said Lennox.
Now operational, the fountain will be turned on when the weather warms enough to ensure nothing will freeze.
The project was the brainchild of The Dalles Beautification Committee, with help, funds and fundraising from The Dalles Lions. So far, about $7,000 has been invested in the project.
With the fountain again operational, the Lions and the Committee hope to create a circular path of paving stones connecting the fountain and the other entrances to the rose garden. The stones will create an inner circle, with short paths to the east, west and north entrances.
Once in place, the red gravel currently in place will be removed, and bark chips will be spread, said Brenda Coats. She noted that the loss of the fountain pump was traced primarily to the gravel, which was being thrown into the fountain.
The partnership between the Lions and the Committee has been critical, Coats said, because the committee cannot receive funding, while The Dalles Lions Charitable Trust is a 501(c)3 charitable trust and therefore can receive donations. The project suited the Lions as well, said Wilcox. “The Lions have invested in parks all over The Dalles.”
Together, they hope to complete the paving stone project by June of this year.
A number of contributions can be made and recorded for posterity: Diamond ($5,000 plus); Silver ($251-499); Bronze ($100-250); and Friends (to $99.)
Contribution can be made to TDLCCT, P.O. Box 937, The Dalles. Include your name and address to receive a recipt. For more information, call or text 541-980-1129.
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