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ANNUAL CLEANUP DUBBED SUCCESS

By Ray King/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Saturday, September 13, 2008 11:42 PM CDT

Young and old from throughout Jefferson County rolled up their sleeves Saturday morning to pick up trash in neighborhoods, parks, and along streets and highways as part of the Great Arkansas Cleanup.

Jody Taylor, with the Junior League of Pine Bluff, picks up litter in the Civitan Playland at Regional Park on Saturday during the Great Arkansas Cleanup. Pine Bluff Commercial/Ralph Fitzgerald

Gloria Sumner, executive director of the Pine Bluff/Jefferson County Clean and Beautiful Commission, said nearly 1,000 people from throughout the county participated in the annual event, with Watson Chapel Junior High School sending the largest group of participants, 110 students and faculty members.

“The Great Arkansas Cleanup actually kicked off Sept. 6 and we were one of 15 areas who held ours today,” Sumner said Saturday morning at a picnic and awards ceremony held on the lawn of the Pine Bluff Civic Center.

“It was really good to see people come out and show pride in their community by trying to make it cleaner and greener,” she said.

Members of the Junior League spent their morning picking up trash at the Civitan Playground in the Pine Bluff/Jefferson County Regional Park, and according to President Jennifer Graves, collected about seven bags of trash.

“We started at the playground, then moved to the amphitheater area, and finished up back at the playground,” Graves said, explaining that the playground was a signature project of the league about four years ago, then turned over to the Pine Bluff Parks and Recreation Department.

“It’s kind of a joint project now but we feel a special sense of loyalty to the playground and we were glad to come clean it up,” she said. “I was also glad to see children playing there so it’s obviously being utilized.”

Recycling bins and trash containers were available Saturday morning at Hestand Stadium, the Pine Bluff Household Hazardous Waste Center at 16th Avenue and Pennsylvania Street, at Altheimer and White Hall as part of the cleanup program.

“An event like this helps draw the community together,” Chris Brown, chairman of the Clean and Beautiful Commission, said. “How a community looks reflects the feelings of people about that community, and it was great to see so many people come out to help with this.”

Ted Davis, the administrative assistant to Pine Bluff Mayor Carl Redus Jr., said he and the mayor were out early Saturday, helping to set up chairs and tents on the lawn of the civic center, then moving on to Saracen Landing where many of the groups mobilized before heading out to their assigned areas.

“It’s exciting to see lots of young people, and adults, come together because events like this help build cohesiveness in the community, and it’s an opportunity for some of these young people to get involved in volunteer activities,” Davis said.

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