2 days ago
Shenandoah cleanup aims to bring community together again
When Shenandoah held its first townwide cleanup this spring, five dumpsters worth of junk were removed from public and private properties by volunteers, making a big difference in the borough's appearance.
But the benefits of that 'Shenandoah One Community, Helping Each Other' effort, as it was called, went far beyond that, officials said.
Working hard together on that rainy April day united people who'd never met before, 50 residents and officials from different neighborhoods, backgrounds and ethnicities pitching in for the good of Shenandoah, officials said.
Afterward they celebrated together with a picnic, feasting on donated food of all types, from Italian to Mexican to Polish to Dominican.
And now the borough is looking to make such cleanups into regular events, with the next scheduled for Saturday, June 21.
'The town was getting a little cruddy looking,' said Shenandoah Council President Joseph Boris. 'So we decided to be proactive. And being proactive gets results.'
Those volunteering for the June 21 cleanup should meet outside borough hall on W. Washington Street at 9:45 for a quick safety briefing. The work will take place from 10:30 to 3:30, rain or shine, followed by another big picnic at the Columbia Fire Company, with restaurants from town again donating the food.
There is no need to bring trash bags or gloves as those will be provided.
'Just bring yourselves, be ready to work for a few hours and bring a healthy appetite,' said borough manager Mike Cadau.
Members of the Shenandoah community pick up trash along a road during a Community Cleanup event in April. (SUBMITTED)
The upcoming cleanup will work much like the first, with the volunteers walking through as much of the town as they have time for, picking up trash wherever they find it. In many cases the volunteers knocked on doors to let people know that they were there to help clean their yards, and often the residents were thankful for that help and came out to assist.
It's also an educational day, Cadau said, as those whose properties are getting run-down will be politely told of the borough's ordinances against high grass, debris and other maintenance violations, and how they can get into compliance instead of facing code enforcement penalties.
While last time the volunteers loaded up mattresses, downed fences and other large pieces of debris in the dumpsters, this time they'll focus on smaller items and inform people of the process for getting bigger things hauled away. That involves paying the borough $15 for a tag to place on those items, which the borough will then haul away, a much cheaper rate than they'd pay if they took it to the landfill themselves, Cadau said.
When Boris and four others were finishing for the day during the April cleanup, they walked by Divine Mercy Parish on W. Cherry Street and several of the nuns invited them inside the chapel to bless them, which was indicative of the appreciation that the cleanup received, Boris said.
'The whole town supported us,' he said.
That includes the community group La Casa de los Latino, an organization led by resident Victor Aquino.
Shenandoah's Latino population is just as interested as anyone in improving the borough, he said, and it was happy to be part of the cleanup.
'It was good,' he said. 'A lot of people joined us. We all want to get our town looking better.'
Cadau agreed, saying the cleanup was a day of unity that should help break down ethnic barriers in the community going forward.
The post-cleanup picnic was a good example.
'It was a nice way to celebrate what we accomplished together. There was a lot of camaraderie,' he said. 'And the food was delicious. I tried things I'd never had before.'
'It's all about taking the opportunity to get to know each other,' he said. 'People are people.'
Since the first cleanup, there has been a big increase in code violation tips called into the borough office, he said. That shows that more people are caring about the state of things and taking pride in their community, which is what borough officials want, he said.
Volunteers for June 21 can sign-up in advance by calling the borough office at 610-462-1918, or they can just show up at borough hall at the meeting time.
Even those who don't start the day as volunteers can take part, Cadau said, by keeping an eye out for the large group that will working its way through town wearing the yellow 'Shenandoah One Community' shirts, he said.
'If you see us, come out and join us,' he said.
