Community rolls up its sleeves to clean up, beautify

As a community, Orofino will be rolling up its sleeves, putting on gloves, grabbing trash bags, pulling out gardening tools and working Saturday to beautify and clean up all over town.

Since 1996, local organizations and governments have been working together to make Orofino a cleaner more beautiful place for residents and visitors alike. Organizer Moe Pare' said there were 656 people that participated last year. While not all those who participate do the work on Saturday, the official Community Clean Up Day does provide a time to focus on and encourage people to get out and spruce up their yards, businesses and neighborhoods.

Community Clean Up is one time of year that the lines between public and private property become a little less defined as the city and county make special efforts to help citizens with projects that may be just too big for them otherwise. A few years ago, there was a property that needed volunteers, a backhoe and a dump truck to do the work, so a church group was contacted and the city helped out with their backhoe and dump truck. One of the city crew members donated his time to run the backhoe. The county waives fees on such things as used motor oil, tires, appliances, batteries, refrigerators, stoves, freezers and air conditioners at the transfer station.

Organizations, families and individuals clean up their properties and neighborhoods and then volunteer to clean all around Orofino, up the hills and down. Then there is beautification with tree seedlings being given away at the City Park and drawings for ornamental trees and shrubs. People plant everything from petunias to rhododendrons and trees in celebration of spring, Earth Day and Arbor Day in this combined event.

Those who need help with clean up projects or who would like to volunteer, may contact Pare’ at 476-3726.

Watch Window on the Clearwater each day this week for details on the activities and celebration.

Check out these scenes of Community Clean Up 2005:

Photos: 1. Clean up helpers came in every age Saturday. Shown from left are: Amy and Alex Gladhart and Cody and Devin Fletcher who were with the group from AmericanWest Bank. 2. Maniac Pride took the clean up theme into the car wash realm. 3. Tim, Janet and Tanisha Overman brought in a wheelbarrow full of trash that was collected by AmericanWest Bank group. 4. Dianne Cochrane helped with the Kiwanis cleaning bunch. 5. The long overgrown State Hospital North Cemetery needed fallen trees and branches removed first. Shown from left are: Jason Kessinger, Sondra Annis and Dale King from the Orofino Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 6. Members of Post #3296 of Veterans of Foreign Wars cleaned up Cannon Park. Shown from left are: Carl Cook, Post Commander; Raymundo Rosales, trustee; and Cliff Clelland, quartermaster. 7. Duane Annis (left) saws a tree into pieces as Jason Kessinger helps to haul the pieces away. 8. Peggy Polito gathered a variety of items during her work on Clean Up Day.