Community Comes Together for Trail Cleanup in Spartanburg County
Residents of Spartanburg county enjoyed a day of community effort and environmental care on Saturday. But they weren’t there to jog or cycle. Instead, they turned out in support of a trail clean-up initiative organized by the Play Advocate Live Well group, fondly known as PAL.
PAL employees, along with several local volunteers, took up the task of cleaning two popular city trails – Lower Drayton Trail and Three Creeks Trail. Simultaneously, Spartanburg Area Conservancy oversaw a similar clean-up effort on the Cottonwood Trail, a part of the renowned DAN or Daniel Morgan Trail System.
A Large Turnout of Nature-loving Volunteers
The Lower Drayton trailhead bore witness to the environmental stewardship of 25 volunteers, who arrived Saturday morning prepared with bug spray, tree shears, rakes, and gardening gloves. The mission? Clearing up branches and other debris brought by Hurricane Helene. All the debris that volunteers gathered between 9 -11 a.m. is scheduled to be removed by the county.
“Our team has been out this week. We’ve had a couple of folks working at Duncan Park. I think they said there were more than 20 trees down, just on the trails,” commented the director of PAL, Laura Ringo. “At this point, we knew it was safe for our volunteers to get out. So many are willing to help, which we’re so thankful for.”
Coordination Amidst Chaos
PAL’s new Trails Development Director, Leigh MacDonald, has been collaborating closely with trail strategist Ned Barrett. The duo has been attentively assessing the damage, gauging the extent of clean-up work required. Despite the rough conditions, the spirit of the volunteers remained undeterred.
A Community Pulling Together
Joining from Inman was one of the volunteers, Olympia Waitman, who equipped herself with tree shears, shrub trimmers, and a rake. “So this is me doing my part in the community,” Waitman shared. “I did some neighborhood cleanup, and now I just want to help elsewhere.”
Waitman encouraged others in the community to take up the torch of community service and altruism. Whether it’s supplying extra water bottles, food, or clean-up tools, every little help counts.
Volunteers of All Backgrounds United for a Cause
Also there cleaning up was Retired Converse University professor Melissa Walker. Like many residents in the area, Walker frequently uses these trails. To her, they are not just paths for leisure but represent a community resource and responsibility.
“We often participate in their every three months trail cleanup. We were on Mary H. Wright just a couple of weeks ago, and so when I saw they were doing a special one today, we thought it would be an important opportunity to come and contribute,” stated another regular volunteer, Rebecca Mueller. Mueller was accompanied by her husband Chad, a professor at USC Upstate, and their son Reed.
A Community Undeterred by Challenges
The Mary Black Rail Trail which starts on Henry Street in downtown Spartanburg, is the only PAL trail that is currently open. PAL Director Laura Ringo hopes that most trails will reopen by early next week. “So if people aren’t able to be here today, we certainly would welcome them to join us another time because we’re not done,” Ringo affirmed.
Indeed, all signs indicate that the residents of Spartanburg County are ready to brave the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, armed with a heart of service, a sense of community, and the resilience to rebuild and persevere.
