When Bob Husband strolled into the local Boys & Girls Club McKee branch to ask about doing some volunteer landscaping, Branch Director Lauren Stratton had no idea what her site would be getting out of this little arrangement.

For the past six months, Husband has shown up three days a week, usually staying several hours to take care of the grounds surrounding the McKee branch, tend to paths and gardens and more. And yes, he’s kept up his schedule through the hot summer months, all because he enjoys what he does.

“He has spent the majority of that time cleaning up the natural desert area on the corner of Calaveras and Del Cambre,” Stratton said. “He has reset the walking trails, cub back the dead and overgrown plants and removed tree stumps. It has really changed the appearance of that area.”

Stratton said that, once it’s cooler out, the area will be a very nice place to visit for a neighborhood stroll.

More than handy with a rake and clippers, Husband has gone the extra mile to do some teaching at the Club, too.

“Beyond that, Bob has brought his knowledge about cacti to the members of the club,” Stratton added. “With a little help from the members, he has started a small cactus garden with cacti that grew from cuttings in his yard.

“He came to the club and demonstrated the proper way to safely handle cacti and how to plant them without getting injured.”

And on top of all of that, Stratton said that Husband’s efforts have saved the club “thousands of dollars” in landscaping cost, all out of the kindness of his heart.

“Bob is a great guy who is hardworking, always smiling and usually ready with a joke or story to share,” Stratton continued. “We are proud to have him as part of our Boys & Girls Club family.”

As for Husband himself, he said he simply enjoys being outside and working with his hands.

Husband said he and his family moved to Arizona in 1972, so they’re “almost natives to the state.”

Believe it or not, putting in hours at the Club isn’t Husband’s only “job.” For actual work, he is involved with a coffee company out of Tempe called Momentto Coffee Roaster.

Husband said the company is just about ready to go online and expand its operations between now and October.

“We’re doing some interesting things, too,” Husband added. “People go for wine tastings, so we’re going to do coffee tastings. People will be able to come down to the shop, see them actually do a roast and see how fresh the coffee is that they buy from us.”

Husband clearly takes pride in his coffee, just as he takes pride in the work he’s doing around the McKee Branch.

When it comes to community service and the Rotary Club, Husband said he’s “not involved, but I am.” He has a couple pals involved with Rotary and, through them, he becomes involved with projects. He said he wasn’t interested in working fundraiser events but, at the Boys & Girls Club, he saw an opportunity to get his hands dirty.

“Almost every club meets on Tuesday and Thursday, and I work those days in Tempe, so I haven’t signed on with a club,” Husband continued. “But I’ve always had a thing for working outside and working with cactus, so this made sense.”

Husband said he first got involved at the McKee branch because he was going to help set up the cactus garden. He’s made good on that at this point, and so much more.

“They had all these trails laid out, but portions had gone missing,” Husband continued. “I’ve been sorting those out, trimming out the dead stuff, cutting back some of trees and just fine-tuning what was originally done.”

Husband said he’s also happily working with the Club to help students in the garden, which he’s utilizing Momentto coffee husks to help beef up the mulch for.

“It’s just putts and go,” Husband said. “I ask them, ‘how about I do this,’ and most of the time they say, ‘yay.’ I’m working at it…I figure, this place helps take care of the boys and the girls in the area, so why not help them?”