Garden Hose Volunteer

Cardiff-by-the-Sea, California

Bronze sculptures of figures holding hoses usually depict heroic firefighters. In this case, the hose-wielder is a revered garden volunteer who tended the grounds at a narrow park between highways.

The park is strip of foliage and a pathway between two major roads along the ocean in Cardiff-by-the-Sea. The Carpentier Parkway (later named Seaside Parkway) median is a scenic nature feature in an area otherwise choked with cars and businesses. The park has survived due to its supporters, who provide funds and their time on its upkeep. Wayne Holden was a role model in that regard, a Chamber of Commerce member who might be spotted by passing drivers as he tended to the plantings and trees.

Holden died in 1997, and the Cardiff Chamber of Commerce commissioned sculptor James Pugh to create a nice statue in his memory. The artwork was unveiled in 1999 among the shrubbery he tended in Cardiff by the Sea Park. The inscription reads, in part: "Dedicated to the memory of Wayne Holden and to the honor of all volunteers who have given time and donations for Carpentier Parkway."

The bronze Wayne Holden is life-sized, broad-shouldered, and wears a trucker's cap. He holds the garden hose in his left hand and directs the nozzle with his right. HIs expression is one of stoic calm

The Holden statue is very close to the town's more famous quirky statue -- the Cardiff Kook. For an amusing assessment of both, check out this video by Professor Knestor Jackdaws - The Surfer & Man With Hose.