Volunteers Clean Up Park for MLK Day
Sierra Club and a coalition of groups are reporting that Monday's 6th Annual MLK Day Clean-Up of Pope Branch Park in the Ward 7 neighborhood of Washington, DC, was a great success.
Irv Sheffey, Sierra Club Environmental Justice Associate Field Organizer in DC, (pictured below in the center) says more than 80 volunteers turned out to remove trash and debris from the park and surrounding neighborhood - and they removed more than 6,000 pounds of trash. He's pleased with how popular and effective the clean-up has become.
"Each year we see more and more improvement in the cleanliness of the park and I attribute it to the quality of care demonstrated at (the MLK Day event) and one we hold in the spring," Irv says. "The community and the river are the direct beneficiaries of that effort." The Pope Branch Creek near the park is a tributary of the Anacostia River.
Irv says he's also happy at how many more volunteers turn out at every clean-up event, despite cold weather or distance for them to the neighborhood.
"These were 82 volunteers from all around the neighborhood, city, and region. I'm always amazed at the volunteers who come out to help in polishing this little gem of a park in southeast (DC). These are people, some coming from afar, who could have chosen to be home, spending time with their families, watching TV, and generally keeping warm. They chose to be out in our community making a difference in the spirit of Dr. King, proving his legacy lives on."
