While it was sparsely attended due to either vacation schedules or Sunday obligations, neighbors still managed to donate their time and energy to participate in our post-Independence Day clean-up. We had homeowners and renters picking up trash and beautifying our streets! One thing is clear: our neighbors care about the appearance of their streets.
At the very least, we managed to pick up the debris that normally litters the streets after July 4th celebrations. Some neighbors even went as far as to pull the weeds growing on the sidewalks in front of their homes. The only thing that was on the streets when we were done were the yellow trash bags provided by DC’s Helping Hands waiting for pick-up.
This last clean-up has reminded us all of the importance of regular clean-ups. If you could not make this one, I do hope you will make the next one, and next one after that! For future clean-ups, we will avoid planning on Sundays as well as give enough advance notice so that as many neighbors as possible can come out and help.
Imagine this: these clean-ups help the Bates Area get to the point where all neighbors care for and act on behalf of the beauty of their streets on a regular basis where there is no need for neighborhood clean-ups AND people get the point that our streets are not the kind where you can litter. Well, that may take a bit of time so let’s continue to work together to make our streets beautiful.
Special thanks to Jim, Caryn and Margaret for all of their help! Please use this post as a way to send some constructive suggestions on how to improve the clean-ups.
Bates Area Civic Association 