Volunteers Lay Groundwork : Charity: United Way’s annual fund-raising campaign is launched with community projects during Day of Caring.

About 600 volunteers fanned out across Ventura County on Saturday, kicking off United Way’s 1994-95 fund-raising campaign with a series of community service projects designed to raise the spirit of giving.

In Thousand Oaks, volunteers pulled weeds and spread mulch at an overgrown botanical garden. Near Westlake, they laid a new wheelchair ramp at a YMCA center tucked behind White Oak Elementary School.

From Oak Park to Oxnard, volunteers participated in dozens of urban renewal projects during the United Way’s sixth annual Day of Caring.

“This event is really critical,” said Bob Quist, administrator of Los Robles Regional Medical Center and chairman of the United Way’s fund-raising campaign in the Conejo Valley.

“Some people may not be in a position to donate money,” added Quist, who traded in his coat and tie for a painter’s cap Saturday morning. “But this gives them an opportunity to provide a few hours of service to the community.”

The United Way hopes to raise at least $5.35 million in Ventura County this year. Last year, the group fell about $200,000 short of that same goal.

But the organization has embarked on a new strategy, tapping businesses that have relocated to the county as a result of the Northridge earthquake.

“One of the goals we’ve had in the Conejo Valley is to get into those companies and make sure they are asked to participate in the United Way campaign,” Quist said. “There is an awful lot of potential for growth in this area.”

At the Conejo Valley Botanic Garden in Thousand Oaks, nine members of Girl Scout Brownie Troop 117 were battling growth of another kind. They pulled weeds and spread mulch.

“We’re just trying to teach them you’ve got to get out there and help your community,” said Sabra Bennett, co-leader of the troop.

At an elementary school near Westlake, county airports accountant Randy Taczynski added a fresh coat of paint to a faded trailer housing a YMCA center. He said he gave up a morning of watching college football and professional tennis to lend a helping hand to the community.

“You’ve got to make some sacrifices,” he said with a laugh. “All that other stuff has got to take a back seat.”