Tennessee Grandfather Cleans Up Creek, Wins Volunteer Award

Sierra Club members Carl and Iva Lee Wolfe moved from Florida to Mountain City, Tennessee, three years ago, after Carl retired. That's Carl at left, above, with granddaughter Mariah.

"We were impressed with the beauty of the area," says Iva Lee. "But the condition of the road and the nearby Falls at Fall Branch was a disgrace." For years people had been tossing trash onto Fall Branch Road and dumping garbage, tires, old appliances, gas tanks, and assorted junk into the branch, which flows into Lake Watauga, a source of drinking water for the area.

After finishing work on the couple's mobile home, Carl, then 68, began venturing out to bag trash along the road. But he soon deepened his commitment—literally—rappelling 50 feet down into the creek to clean up trash at the base of the falls. "Some folks said it couldn't be done," he says, "but when someone tells me I can't do something, I want to prove I can."

The pace picked up in 2007 when Mariah moved to town and began helping out, pulling up the trash by rope that her grandfather had bagged. Over the last six months they have hauled more than 60 large garbage bags out of the creek. A few are pictured above, emblazoned with Carl's handwritten message. 

Carl and Iva Lee speak at Kiwanis and Sierra Club meetings, encouraging others to get involved. Carl also volunteers at the local recycling center and transfer station. This fall he was nominated by the mayor for a Governor's Volunteer Award, presented by Volunteer Tennessee to one person from each county in the state. Carl received his award on October 27, below, in Nashville.

"Carl is a humble man," says Iva Lee, "but he hopes this will motivate more people to volunteer and get involved in the community. This isn't our land; it's provided for us. We're the caretakers, and we could all be better stewards."

Comments

[Vikki Woods]

Congratulations! This is a great honor not only for Carl and his family, but for all those volunteers who work to keep our nation's waters clean.

Members of the Watauga Watershed Alliance are also working to keep Doe Creek, Roan Creek and the entire Watauga River Watershed as clean and bright as it was when Daniel Boone first visited the area hundreds of years ago.

[Watauga Doc]

Thank you for making our little slice of heaven cleaner. We appreciate your hard work!

[Brenda Wolfe]

This is so great - to see you getting the recognition you deserve. I think part of what's wrong with our country today is that no one wants to look beyond their own backyard to do anything for the community. I think it's time we all became more involved and aware. Like a politician said recently, we should all believe we are our brother's keeper, and our sister's keeper. This country could improve so much if more people just had some of the values of the American Indians in regard to caring for the land and caring for each other.

[Gloria]

Honored at Governor’s Volunteer Stars Awards

Johnson County, TN volunteer Carl Wolfe represented our community at the first-ever Volunteer Stars Awards dinner in Nashville on Monday October 27, 2008. Volunteer Stars Advisory Panel made their selection last summer. Criteria for their selection included: 1) the community’s need of the volunteer service performed, 2) the initiative taken to perform the service, and 3) the impact of the volunteer service on the community.
Volunteer Tennessee presented the First Annual Governor’s Volunteer Stars Awards during a reception in Nashville. The awards honored outstanding adult and youth volunteers from across Tennessee who strive to improve their communities through outstanding service.
The awards took take place from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. CDT in the Tennessee Room of the William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower. News Channel 5 Anchor Vicki Yates was the emcee.
Volunteer Tennessee is the 25-member citizen board appointed by Governor Bredesen to oversee AmeriCorps and service-learning programs and to advance volunteerism and citizen service to solve community problems in the Volunteer State.

[Wilbert]

The poster next to Carl's Nashville award photo says it all...."a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love."
Carl,Thanks for all you do.

[Kelly Aldridge]

Thank you Carl!! It is great to see voluteers like you in our community. My family appreciates you and your commitment.

[Tom Trevathan]

Great job, Carl! If each of us takes care of our own patch and one more we will restore the earth.

[TERRANCE JONES]

Great Example Carl! Maybe our new administration will organize us Gray Panther volunteers...or maybe that's our responsibility. This seems like it would be a great Eagle Scout project!

Carl's take on stewardship seems close to the Gaia's Gardening permaculture principles.

[Dennis Shekinah]

Not only is Carl repelling 50ft down to haul out trash, he's also active in fundraising for the protection of Doe Creek, which involves, in part, chainsawing fallen timber from steep hillsides. The man is a powerhouse as well as an inspiration. If there was a Carl Wolfe in every community, the tide of environmental apathy and ignorance in this country would turn around. Carl, my thanks! I'm glad you're my neighbor.

[Beverly Bunker]

WOW; Carl you are a true American hero and inspiration. Maybe with the new adminstration we can move forward the idea of national and world wide care of our planet as a high priority. Also, more people need to hear Carl's story, rather than the negative stuff which bogs down the media. We, as concerned citizens, need to express the desire to hear about the Carl's of the world rather than the Hollywood drama divas, etc. to the media as an important agenda/s we want covered.

The Sierra Club was instrumental in getting Obama elected, let's keep our positive momentum going to move more of our issues forward into main stream America. To this end, would it be advantages for us to show how ordinary people make real change in our world, enpowering other to do the same? Finally, can this image provide Main Street Americans with a vision of hope from us, rather than seeing us as the crazy, radical environmentalist?

[cynthia true]

Thank you and your granddaughter for cleaning up the waterfall, creek and woods. Our planet looks so fragile (in that photo from space). All citizens should care about all people and our environment. I don't think you should have to risk your life by repelling 50 feet to do it. You are heros. Thank you.

[kathy]

sending gratitude from california!

[Dowgin]

What a dynamic duo! Family values accomplishing the work of community earth stewardship is a wonderful message of HOPE for America.

[Tabatha Stellar]

I can never get enough of inspiring stories like these. It shows us all we can achieve anything we set our mind to. Don't you hate it when someone says "it can't be done." Well, Carl sure did prove them wrong!