What do you get when you combine:

• 40 safety vests
• Two hours of time
• Four miles of twisting county road
• One trip to the YMCA and Dairy Queen?

On April 11th, 2012 the 40 young men and women from Pressley Ridge Laurel Park took part in an Adopt A Highway cleanup day to help the local community in which they are a part of. It was a very brisk day; in fact for the first time in over a month snow flurries filled the air. However, the youth and staff would not be deterred from the task at hand. The campus had set a goal of at least 40 bags of trash to be collected and was determined to see it through.

The groups began the clean up slowly but began to get more and more into making the community shine and practicing those 3 C’s. Each group worked diligently at making sure every candy wrapper, soda can, McDonald’s cup and tire was picked up and ready to be hauled to the appropriate place, the dump. What pile they accumulated! Our groups have completed Adopt-A-Highway cleanup days three times a year for over 20 years. This was the first time the pile was so large it could not be left at the side of the driveway entrance. The small mountain of trash had to be moved onto campus to keep traffic moving and the entrance safe.

The groups were working knowing a trip to Dairy Queen and the YMCA was on the line for the group who collected the most bags of trash that day. Group would also earn a prize for the most items on a scavenger hunt list. Items included the most unusual piece and largest piece of trash as one just never knows what is out there! This is not to say the vision was lost, in the end it was about restoring the beauty of a county road and doing something nice for the community. Not only this, the youth and staff actually were able to make the road a safer place to travel as some of the trash was in the road or very close to being in the road. I must say it made a huge difference for the community and was great to see the sense of accomplishment from all. When you put your mind to it, not only can mountains be moved but they can also be found and created!

So, to answer the question above what do you get when you combine these four things:

• 14 Tires
• 2 Televisions
• 1 Highchair
• 1 Lay-Z-Boy Recliner
• 1 Refrigerator (Biggest Piece of Trash)
• 1 Glass Chess Set (Completely intact and the Most Unusual Piece of Trash)
• 1 Wheelbarrow
• 3 Broken sheets of Drywall
• 9 Pieces of 2×4
• 2 Vacuum cleaners
• And a New Record high of bags collected – 60 BAGS OF TRASH!

We are very proud of our young men and women and can’t wait to see what they can do the next time we clean up our community. We can only hope our efforts make a difference and others will start or continue practicing their own Clean Community, as we practice the 3 Cs here at Laurel Park.