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- Mariner's Trail is a recreational trail
that runs between Manitowoc and Two Rivers,
five and a half miles.
It's right along Lake Michigan.
[whoosh of waves]
It's a beautiful place to be.
- It's a place where you will often find Judy Corrado.
- We were disappointed
there were some berms that had been planted at one time
and were not taken care of.
The next thing we said was,
"What if we got some gardeners to volunteer?"
- An interesting concept coming from Judy
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because ask her what she knows about gardening
and she ll give you an unexpected answer.
- Zero.
Oh my goodness, no formal training
and not very much knowledge.
I don't know a lot about plants but I'm learning.
- Judy's idea for volunteers
blossomed into the Mariner's Trail Public Gardens.
- That first year, we got 18 people interested in gardening
and then it just grew and grew.
We have 50 gardens along the trail
all taken care of by volunteers.
I think our oldest volunteer retired last year and he was 92.
We've seen little kids working on the gardens.
- Along the trail, Judy is a familiar face
tending to her own adopted garden
and with little or no experience,
she oversees 49 others.
- Oh, it's just so much fun.
Why not do it?
I'm retired.
I have the time.
My garden is a really nice site.
It's real close to the wayside.
We call it Woodland Drive Wayside.
I'm not a gardener by nature or by anything
except I love flowers.
And I jokingly say my garden theme is
if there's an empty spot, put color and I do.
I'm passionate about Mariner's Trail.
- Judy and her husband Larry
have shown a passion for the trail
since it first opened in 2004.
And belong to the group Friends of Mariner's Trail.
- It's an important part of my life
and the gardens have just made it that much better.
It's fun to see
people sharing what they love with the community.
Those gardeners have been there three years.
I don't know how they heard about Mariner's Trail.
I don't know how they got to be gardeners.
But they've put a lot of work into it
and it really is, really is nice.
- Judy's enthusiasm has resulted in what some now describe as
the "Jewel along the Lake Michigan coast."
- It is absolutely beautiful.
People love using Mariner's Trail
and the flower beds are just a bonus.
They're a freebie.
I just feel so fortunate to live on Lake Michigan
and have this opportunity.
I think a lot of people do identify Judy Corrado
and Mariner's Trail flower beds.
I think that would be a pretty good legacy actually.
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