Volunteers took to the streets in several Augusta neighborhoods Saturday as part of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.
About 80 people signed up to take part in the clean-up effort in Harrisburg, Sand Hills, Laney-Walker/Bethlehem and East Augusta, according to Commissioner Jordan Johnson, who along with Commissioner Francine Scott, spearheaded the effort.
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Volunteers met in the parking lot at the Paine College HEAL Complex, and Jordan encouraged the volunteers before the clean-up effort began.
Jordan said he passes streets with trash on them every day, and what the volunteers were doing would make a difference.
“All of us put together are doing something important,” he said.
Russell Joel Brown, the Harrisburg team leader, said they were cleaning the right-of-ways and vacant lots near St. Luke United Methodist Church on Crawford Avenue in Harrisburg. They cleaned trash and debris near the John C. Calhoun Expressway overpass and to Broad Street.
Amanda Stevens was part of the group in Harrisburg. She picked up trash with her daughter, Ava Nguyen, 6. She also brought doughnuts for the volunteers there.
Stevens, who works as the lead teacher at the Westabou Montessori School, which meets at St. Luke United Methodist Church, said she volunteers a lot in Harrisburg because she feels it’s important to be involved with the community she serves.
While the weekend was part of the Martin Luther King Jr., observances in the city, Jordan said he was encouraged by the turnout for the event and doesn’t plan for this will be an isolated one.
“This is definitely not the only one,” he said. “We’ll do another one in the spring.”
He said it’s good for volunteers to step up to help keep their communities clean instead of waiting on the city to do it.
Groups participating in the Jan. 16 service event included Keep Augusta Beautiful, Good Neighbor Ministries, the MLK Observance Committee, Boys with A Future, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority and BLACC.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com
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