09/02/2026
Join COA’s Cutters & Clippers – Helping St. Johns County Seniors One Lawn at a Time! Every Thursday morning for most of the year, a group of volunteers called the Cutters & Clippers meets at Council on Aging (COA) on Marine Street and prepares to cut the lawns of St. Johns County elders who can no longer handle the job themselves and cannot afford to pay for the service. Fuel and equipment for the service are provided through generous donations, and hard work and sweat equity are provided entirely by local COA volunteers. Remarkably, as of July 2026, this dedicated team has serviced in excess of 11,000 lawns.
Jim Gajewski, who has been volunteering with the Cutters & Clippers for the past nine years, explained, “It is a privilege and a labor of love.”
History: In May 2006, Fred Jackson, a member of Memorial Presbyterian Church (MPC), decided to help elderly and health-challenged members of the St. Augustine community to continue to live independently in their homes by volunteering to cut their lawns, thereby eliminating that cost and concern. Fred purchased a lawnmower, a leaf blower, and an edger/trimmer out of his own funds. Along with rakes, shovels, and clippers he already owned, Fred set out to help those in need. He reached out to Council on Aging to ask if the local nonprofit organization could provide storage for the equipment and administrative support. Thus began the Cutters & Clippers.
“When word got out around the church, it did not take long for volunteers to show up,” Gajewski said. “Over 20 members of MPC have come by COA on Thursday mornings during lawn cutting season to lend a hand. From that initial group of MPC volunteers, the word spread, and men and women from other churches, organizations, and the community at large have joined the volunteer crew.”
The Cutters & Clippers are a part of COA’s Care Connection program which provides services that help older adults continue to live independently in their homes, rather than being forced by circumstances to enter assisted living. The program fills the gaps by providing important services for which no government funding sources exist. Services include lawn care, minor home repair, wheelchair ramp construction, installation of safety equipment, and providing assistive devices, pet food, and budgeting assistance. Donations from the community fund the cost of materials and equipment, and teams of caring volunteers provide the services.
“Today the Cutters & Clippers have enough equipment (zero turns, mowers, trimmers, blowers, and trailers) to outfit two teams every week,” Gajewski shared. “The one resource we never have enough of is volunteers! We would love to have you as a member of this volunteer team.”
The team’s cutting season runs approximately from the middle of March through very early December. They meet Thursdays at 8 a.m. at Council on Aging, 180 Marine Street in St. Augustine, and are back in time to enjoy lunch provided by COA by noon.
For more information on joining the Cutters & Clippers, please contact COA volunteer coordinator Catherine Quintieri at (904) 209-3700 or [email protected]. To support their important work by making a donation, please contact COA’s Amy Robinson at (904) 209-3700, [email protected], or visit www.coasjc.org/donate.
Visit www.coasjc.org/care-connection to learn more about how COA’s Care Connection program helps seniors in St. Johns County enjoy continued independence, dignity, and safety in the place they call home.
