KILLINGLY — A volunteer-led restoration at Cat Hollow Park has created ten gardens while tackling invasive plants along one of Dayville’s walking routes, according to an October 17 report by The Day.
The newspaper reports that Wendy Fusco leads a six-woman core group drawn from the Conservation Commission and Quiet Corner Gardeners Club, with help from roughly 150 other volunteers. She estimated their combined work at 3,500 hours over three years. A meadow garden, a pollinator garden and eight smaller planting areas now line the park.
The project has received nearly $3,000 in grants for plants and equipment, The Day reports. The newspaper also lists guided tours and a merchandise fundraiser at the park for Sunday, October 25, from 1 to 4 p.m. That is an opportunity to see the work, not a claim that the restoration is finished.
The Conservation Commission’s own award register identifies Fusco as its 2024 environmental-award recipient for beautification work at Cat Hollow. That earlier recognition places the current account within an ongoing effort rather than a newly launched project.
The commission’s park guide locates Cat Hollow at 25–45 Cat Hollow Road and says it opened as a town park in 2003. Its half-mile former road is closed to traffic and suitable for bicycles and strollers. The route follows Whetstone Brook, a mill pond and waterfalls, with the original mill site roughly halfway along.
The landscape also preserves part of Killingly’s industrial history. The commission describes successive sawmill, gristmill and textile uses along the brook; a later mill at Cat Hollow was destroyed by fire in 2001. Visitors can consult the commission’s printable brochure and trail map before going. The current volunteer-work figures and October 25 plans are attributed to The Day; the commission pages corroborate the park background and earlier award.