With tufts of weeds spilling along the walking trail and a wheelbarrow nearby, Black Rock Church members from the Fairfield congregation put their backs into clearing parts of the Fruit Trail and Victory Garden in Fairfield Hills, Saturday, June 1.

They volunteered for the day to “help Newtown,” said Parks and Recreation Director Amy Mangold, who also was working with them Saturday. She said the group was helping out through a day of service.

“We love people, we love God, and we wanted to serve the community,” said church member Deb Haggerty. Waist deep in a blooming bed of Rosa Rugosa along the Fruit Trail — a planted area of native fruit-baring shrubs and ground cover — she worked alongside Ms Mangold and church members Melanie Dower and Doug Scarth.

Another team was at work in the Victory Garden, a few yards away. The garden, maintained by local volunteers, provides food for Newtown’s food pantry.

Learn more about the Victory Garden and Fruit Trail at newtown-ct.gov/parks-recreation/pages/victory-garden or contact the recreation department for information about the Fruit Trail at 203-270-4340.