Dogbone Meadow Volunteers Get a Big 'Atta Boy!'

Once in a while, you've gotta throw 'em a bone, right?

The all-volunteer Friends of , who work hard to make Novato's only dog park a great place for canines and humans, recently garnered statewide recognition for their collaboration with the city of Novato and a group eager to build a community garden next to the dog park.

The Friends received an award Feb. 25 from the California Park and Recreation Society at a banquet held in San Rafael.

They were thrown a bone, but they sure earned it. The Friends were feted for "promoting participation in recreation, strengthening community identity and unity, promoting health and wellness, fostering human development and strengthening community pride."

"When we were told the city was going to nominate our group, we were really surprised," said Brian Pearson, president of the Friends. "We had not even heard of the award let alone thought of receiving anything like this. We are really the little engine that could."

A year ago, the Friends raised concerns about the for the community garden at , off Novato Boulevard just west of A proposed road through the north side of the dog park required the removal of several mature trees. City parks officials arranged two professionally facilitated meetings between the Novato Community Garden Committee and dog park representatives. The Friends suggested a new design plan that moved the proposed road further into the dog park and away from the trees, creating a separate area for smaller dogs. The garden folks enthusiastically adopted the alternate plan.

"We went through a series of meetings ... to work out a plan to accommodate both groups' needs," Pearson said.

Once the deal was reached, the Friends worked on raising money to help the city with park maintenance. On one day, 27 volunteers handled tree pruning, raking and general cleaning to help defer city costs, then donated $2,000 to the city. Pearson said another $1,000 is on the way soon.

Several nonprofits have stepped up to support the Friends, a group that has grown from three dues-payers to nearly 100.

"We love what we do, and we are growing because of community support and dog lovers who visit the park," Pearson said. "We are truly glad of the recognition this award gave us, and we are pledged to live up to the community spirit ethic that the award represents."

Click here to learn more about Dogbone Meadow.