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restoration through on-the-job discussions with park staff. The students are part of an alternative high school program sponsored by Looking Glass that incorporates work experience with classroom studies. "It is a great opportunity for us as well as them-- we get volunteer labor and they get work experience and some outdoor/environmental education," says Ginny Alfriend, head gardener at Hendricks Park. "Their youthful energy is sometimes just what we need to get the job done!" Hendricks Park staff has been working with Riverfront School students for the past 15 years. Typically, crews of three students work at the park from September through March. For more information about the Looking Glass Riverfront School and Career Center, call 302-2554. For more information about Hendricks Parks, contact Ginny Alfriend at 682-5324. Seatinq Area in Hendricks Park Rhododendron Garden Created From Fallen Trees Genius is often born out of desperation. Confronted with a deteriorated south slope in the rhododendron garden, Keith Stanley and Ginny Alfriend, both gardeners at Hendricks Park, decided to get creative. The area suffered from numerous storms and droughts that have hit the area over the past five years, and many of the plants and trees are of an advanced age. Many of the oaks had fallen, including one group of about six trees in a circular formation that had been the focal point of the area. In addition, many of the rhododendrons had declined, died or been broken, and the weeds had taken over. To compound matters, the area was difficult to access with mowers and other equipment because of the management decision to allow the fallen oak trunks to decompose naturally. Faced with plenty of fallen logs, Stanley and Alfriend decided to work with what they had and began cutting the logs into manageable segments and rearranging them in a way that / nn h~.ne.h rn~.~.t.~ .~.v~.r~l n~.~.d.~ at H~.ndrie. k.~ Park looked neater and served a functional purpose, such as holding back soil around a rhododendron on a slope or along a path edge. As they began manipulating the logs in different configurations, inspiration was born. Stanley tried slicing an oak log in half lengthwise and then notched two posts (also from a downed log) and fit them into the curved side of the oak slab, creating a bench. The slope was re-grad ed slightly as a finishing touch, and the result was a rustic seating area in one of the sunniest parts of the garden overlooking the Summit Path. "We see it as a kind of memorial to the fallen oaks, with hope for the area to be restored to reflect the oak savannah legacy that once characterized that part of Hendricks Park," says Alfriend. For more information about the world renowned Hendricks Park Rhododendron Garden, contact Ginny Alfriend, head gardener at Hendricks Park, at 682-5324. Tommy Tune Comes to Town He has danced and sung for three U.S. Presidents and the Queen of England. Now, he is coming to sing and dance for Eugene. Taking the Silva stage on Sunday, January 23, Tommy Tune, dancer, singer, choreographer and director, will delight audiences with his performance of "Taps, Tunes and Tales"-- a fabulous Broadway song and dance revue with a big band sound! This 6'6" entertainer danced onto the Broadway scene in 1965 and hasn't stopped since. Winner of nine Tony Awards in four different categories, he is "as long on talent as on legs." The New York Times proclaimed: "Mr. Tune has reshuffled the elements of the old-style musical into state of the art." His Broadway shows include the Will Rogers Follies, Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Grand Hotel and Nine. He just finished 900 TER PAGE 2 January 13, 2005