All in together to clean up parts of the city for earth week

It was cold, windy, foggy, and raining outside. But that didn’t stop people from heading out and cleaning up parts of the city. One of the events was the Lakewalk cleanup organized by Friends of the Lake Walk. It was held rain or shine, and with the rain; people were out layered up and picking up debris etc. the cleanup took place along 34th Avenue East through Brighton Beach (Kitchi Gammi Park) and along the railroads.

The work from the volunteers wasn’t going unnoticed. "For example, I’ve seen a bunch of people like walking their dogs over here. While we’ve been cleaning up, I think about ten people have "thanked us," for what we have been doing, says Owen Hayden. So, it’s just a really good feeling seeing people appreciate what we’ve been doing."

Ecolibrium3’s Main Street Lincoln Park held its second annual spring cleanup as a part of Ecolibrium3’s Earth Week celebrations. The cleanup happened in neighborhoods from Garfield Avenue to 29th Avenue West and Michigan Street to 3rd.

When people in the community come together, it is a beautiful sight to see." It is amazing! This morning the rain was coming down, and people were coming in. They were all dressed and ready for the rain, and they were into it. It was like this sense of pride in the neighborhood, pride of the city, and really wanting to make a difference, said Laing. Also recognizing that we have a big lake out there. And we’re on a hill, and the stuff that gets left, ended up in our Mother Superior out here, and we don’t want that."

It does not take a lot to make change; Duluth resident and boy scout Derek Miller mentioned it could be small and simple tasks. "Whenever you see garbage, just pick it up and put it in the trash can. You can get a group of friends together and go on an afternoon hike to pick up garbage. Anything you can do helps." Protecting the planet and doing something to make it a better place to live can happen every day.