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Vanessa Melgar
Ronda
Monday, 3 March 2025, 16:30
Dutchman Ger De Heus has been living in Ronda for about 15 years. He loves this mountain town in Malaga province for "its beautiful surroundings", as he puts it. What he didn't like so much was the state of La Galia park, a public space, located in the south of the municipality between the districts of Padre Jesús and Cruz de San Jorge. The park had been very much neglected and "looked like a jungle", full of weeds, fallen trees, broken furniture, glass, plastic and other rubbish. This resident of Ronda decided to do something about it, to clean up the area, with the aim of being able to enjoy it. He was not the only one, there were other local residents who, independently of De Heus, were taking up the baton and doing similar. All of them, around 70 at the moment, have since come together and have called themselves 'Amigos del Parque La Galia' (Friends of La Galia Park).
"We started at the end of September, beginning of October. At the entrance to the park, a tree fell down, I used to remove its branches to be able to get in, and I thought that we had to do something else. I realised that there were other people in the same situation and we thought of joining forces", said this Dutchman who is married to a Ronda native.
From the end of September last year until now, the park has undergone a remarkable change and, although much remains to be done, the current status allows in part for the park to be enjoyed again by the public.
This group has focused its efforts on two improvement tasks. Firstly, on accessibility, the first priority being to remove all discarded glass and plastic: "It was once a very beautiful park. We reached a point where you couldn't enter the park, it was, as I said, a horrible jungle. The children's play area was closed off with overgrown bushes and they used to take bottles and leave their rubbish there. It was very dangerous for our pets. I think we removed about 20 bags of glass and plastic in total," said Ger De Heus.
The second task had 'Amigos del Parque La Galia' cutting back intruding bushes and cleaning an open space that used to be a picnic area. "The aim is to be able to go there in spring and summer, we have done what is within our means", says this spokesperson for the group. Another member of this band of volunteers is photojournalist Jon Nazca, who was already cleaning up the park on his own before the community group was formed. Its members have even removed a stolen motorbike that was hidden in the undergrowth.
These volunteers estimate that the first phase of their work will be completed within a month. They do not rule out becoming an official association, although this will be a matter for future consideration. What is clear to them is that the initiative cannot stop at "cleaning up the park as a one-off" as the park needs regular maintenance.
For this reason they are in contact with Ronda's town council, which, they explained, plans to carry out a more thorough cleaning of the park this month. "The relationship at the beginning was more complicated, but now we have contact and permission to continue working," said Ger De Heus. He added that he feels proud and excited, like his fellow volunteers, about the work already completed and the comments they are receiving. They even go so far as to jokingly compare the current La Galia park to New York's Central Park for the great change it has already undergone by bringing this park back to life from years of neglect. All thanks to the will of this group of local residents.
This band of volunteers plans to continue working. They get themselves organised via a WhatsApp group and so there are usually around 15 members working in the area on different days of the week. To collaborate with them you can contact them through their Facebook page Amigos La Galia.
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