POWNAL – A group of 22 children from Pownal and Freeport, led by adults, picked up and disposed of a whole bunch of trash along a half-mile stretch of Route 9 on April 22, in commemoration of Earth Day.
Coren Wheeler of Pownal, a parent who organized the effort, said that the group, wearing gloves, collected 10 huge bags and a 5-gallon bucket of trash as they walked the stretch from the Route 9/Elmwood Road intersection to the entrance of Bradbury Mountain State Park. They even picked up remnants from a vehicle crash, she said.
Wheeler and her sister, Laura Randall of Freeport, each called friends, who in turn got more children involved. Wheeler obtained permission from parents of the children, and the project was a go. Students ranged in age from kindergarten through high school, Wheeler said.
“The kids were just in awe of what they saw,” Wheeler said. “They couldn’t believe how many cigarette butts were on the ground.”
Randall recorded these comments from the students: “We should do this more often.” “Why is there so much trash?” “I can’t believe how many people litter!”
When the volunteers arrived at Bradbury Mountain, Wheeler said, the park ranger allowed the children to play on the playground while they collected our cars and trash bags.
“From there, we all gathered for lunch and a scavenger hunt to search for Mother Earth’s belongings,” Wheeler said. “Along the way, we stopped at a vernal pool to hear and see the spring peepers.”
The roadside trash collection rewarded the group in another way, as well. They filled out an entry for an art contest sponsored by ecomaine, the waste management company in Portland. Last Thursday, they learned they were one of a small group of winners.
“The kids drew up a picture of what they would like to see on a recycling container,” Wheeler said. “We took all of those ideas, and we came up with one, and we actually won.”
A 20-foot container will be delivered by ecomaine to Randall’s home, and the group will schedule a time to design it, Wheeler said.
“It will be really fun,” she said.
The design will show the earth with the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” arrows on one side. There will be a group of bottles on another. On one end, the students will draw two trees with the recycling emblem and on the other end, depictions of the sun, water, wind and another tree. The students will draw a depiction of two people carrying bags of recycled material to a house on the long end.
In total, it’s been a rewarding experience.
“This year, we contributed our time, love and passion in order to foster community involvement and stewardship for the greater good of this great Earth, which is home for all of us to share,” Wheeler said. “We hope to do it again next year.”
Volunteers collected trash along Route 9 in Pownal on April 22, in observance of Earth Day.
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