The goal of the weekend event, he said, was “to spruce up throughout town, pick up debris, re-mulch, prune, debris removal.”
“When you come through town, it should be nice and clean,” he said.
Members of the Pearson family of West Chester Twp. were among the estimated 225 people who volunteered Saturday.
Lizzy Pearson, 16, and her two sisters, Maddie, 12, and Jayne, 11, picked up trash along the Great Miami River near Bicentennial Commons. Their father works for a Middletown paper company.
“It’s actually really cool, I think, because when are people going to be doing this?” Lizzy Pearson said. “They’re going to be doing it when people get together and it’s kind-of celebrated.”
“It’s fulfilling when you are able to do things like fill up a garbage bag,” she said. “It’s not a good thing that there is that much, but it’s nice to be out here, plus you’re getting a bit of outdoorsyness.”
Not far away, Kay Webb and five others representing Middletown’s All About Pet Care also were cleaning, and had filled five black trash bags with foam cups, motor-oil containers, bottles and other trash.
“We’re having a blast,” said Webb, who is from Miamisburg. “I do care about the Earth, because I want to keep it for kids like this.”
“Healthy people don’t litter,” observed Brenna Heller, whose husband owns All About Pet Care, noting “there’s no trail mixes,” but plenty of junk food wrappers, fast food cups and alcohol bottles to clean up. “It’s not as bad as I thought it would be, though.”
In addition, Kayden Taylor, 10, of Middletown’s Amanda Elementary School and city workers planted a crabapple tree near the city building to mark Arbor Day, which in Ohio falls on the final Friday of April.
Students also painted downtown posts of stop signs and street signs that had become rusted, Michel said. Among schools with students participating were Bishop Fenwick High School, Middletown city schools, Miami University’s Middletown Branch and Cincinnati State’s Middletown campus.
For those who did not make Saturday’s event, there are still opportunities to help clean up the area.
The beautification project Bright Spots, which plants flower pots and areas around Middletown’s city-entrance signs, is looking for volunteers. For more information about helping, call 513-425-7750.
The Great Miami River Cleanup is also set to take place in the fall. The event focuses on removing trash and restoring the health of the Great Miami River. In Middletown, efforts will be held Oct. 22. For more information about volunteering, visit www.greatmiamirivercleanup.org.
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