Fred Grimm pushes a pile of just-cut rush stems out of the pond at the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial on Monday afternoon.

A small group of dedicated volunteers gathered at the memorial for the annual community service project on a sunny but frigid President’s Day. Helpers did landscaping maintenance, removed invasive plants and also picked up scattered branches and debris left by this weekend’s strong winds.

Grimm said he was staying warm even though he was waist-deep in the pond, which was still frozen on one end.

“I’ve got two pairs of fleece on underneath this,” he said of his thick waders.

(Brian Kelly | Bainbridge Island Review)