By Gia Hale
Hollister
– Got a broom? Volunteers of all ages are needed to help
beautify downtown Hollister during the Hollister Downtown
Association’s Fall Cleanup.
Hollister – Got a broom? Volunteers of all ages are needed to help beautify downtown Hollister during the Hollister Downtown Association’s Fall Cleanup.
“We’re looking for anybody that needs community service hours or wants to make downtown beautiful,” said Brenda Weatherly of the HDA.
The Downtown Association traditionally holds downtown cleanups in the spring, but it has on occasion done an additional cleanup in the fall, as it will be doing this year.
“Our big events like the Street Festival and the rally happen after the spring cleanup,” Weatherly said. “So it’s become apparent that the streets really need to be cleaned semiannually.”
The fall cleanup will take place from 8am to noon Sept. 16, when volunteers will come together to make downtown Hollister sparkle. Volunteers will be scrubbing the pavers and sidewalk where they are stained, scraping up gum from the sidewalk, picking up trash, trimming shrubbery and returning rogue shopping carts to their retailers. The HDA encourages the participation of Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, 4-H clubs, high school clubs and students who need community service hours, as well as anyone else interested in helping out.
“Any and all help is welcome,” Weatherly said. “It’s a good opportunity for students who need community service hours to start early in the school year and get some out of the way.”
Though the majority of volunteers at the downtown cleanups tend to be students, adult volunteers are needed to supervise and direct how to clean and what needs to be done.
“We don’t want to just unleash a bunch of kids on the street,” Weatherly laughed.
Last spring, the cleanup was very successful, with 50 students and 25 adults showing up to lend their cleaning services. Volunteers are encouraged to bring brooms, dustpans, garden gloves and shovels to aid in the cleanup. Anyone interested in volunteering should call ahead so the HDA can arrange to have the same number of people working on each street. The HDA can be reached at 636-8406.
