Meet Isabel Coss, executive chef at Pascual on Capitol Hill and pastry chef at Lutece in Georgetown, whose sold-out master class happens on Feb. 23. The Hill Center impressed chef Isabel Coss the very first time she visited, and long before she knew she’d be teaching there. Washington City Paper named her one of its Change Makers for the 2024 People Issue and had brought the group in for a photo shoot. “I fell in love with the place,” she says. “I thought it would be the perfect spot for building a sense of community—and then I saw all the activities listed!” It echoes how the ebullient, 33-year-old Mexico City native feels about opening Pascual on Capitol Hill, which is celebrating its 1-year anniversary in February.

Volunteering Returns to Hill Center!
With Covid-19 cases trending downwards and the promise of outdoor events, Hill Center is once again seeking volunteers to assist with gardening, gallery hanging, and our American Roots Concert Series!
“If you are interested in helping out in the gardens, we would be happy to have you, and can get you started any time of the year!”
-David Mackinnon
Hill Center Volunteer Garden Coordinator
Volunteering at Hill Center:
If you have ever been to a Hill Center event or maybe just passed by the building during gardening season, you know that our volunteers are essential to the care and keeping or our building and mission. Throughout the pandemic, we have had fewer opportunities for volunteers as events were cancelled and the cold made outdoor events almost impossible. With Covid-19 cases decreasing and the warm weather approaching, we are looking forward to seeing more of our volunteers once again!
The garden:

On Tuesday, March 1, Rindy O’Brien wrote a lovely piece titled Volunteering A Great Way to Enjoy Gardening for the Hill Rag featuring gardens around Capitol Hill. Hill Center’s urban garden was featured in this article and O’Brien spoke with David Mackinnon, our volunteer garden coordinator who has been working with our gardens for over 10 years. O’Brien writes “the eight different garden spaces were originally planned by the world renowned, Oehme Van Sweden (OvS) landscape architecture firm” who we still consult with for large projects. David put it best when he said we are “always looking for volunteers to join…usually about six volunteers a season.” Our garden is home to many weddings, children’s classes, concerts, and more! We rely heavily on our volunteers to help us keep it in tip top shape! Plus, O’Brien notes a study by the European Centre for Environment & Human Health at the University of Exeter, which notes “that people who spent two hours a week in green spaces… were substantially more likely to report good health and psychological well-being than those who don’t.”
THE GALLERIES

Also mentioned in O’Brien’s piece is Hill Center’s reinstated need for “volunteers to help with the installation of exhibitions throughout the year.” After an almost 2-year hiatus, our regularly scheduled galleries are back in-person at Hill Center! Our current exhibit, the 2022 Regional Juried Art Exhibit, runs through June 4th. When this exhibit was installed in January, we were unable to have an opening reception due to the rise in Covid-19 cases, but we are looking forward to hosting our first opening reception since the pandemic this coming Spring/Summer. In the meantime, we’re looking to re-build our volunteer team to help transition between exhibits and be on call for other art installations throughout Hill Center’s three floors.
AMERICAN ROOTS CONCERT SERIES

Lastly, as we creep into Spring and Summer, we are looking forward to starting our American Roots Concert Series again! For these free, mostly outdoor, concerts we seek volunteers to help us with our concessions. It’s a great way to volunteer and enjoy fantastic music at the same time!
Here are the dates!
If you are interested in any of the following volunteer opportunities, please reach out to Haviland Atha-Simonton, Programming Assistant, at haviland@hillcenterdc.org. We can’t wait to meet you!