Someone once said "If every man would sweep before his doorstep, the city would be clean.

Thursday, March 08, 2001

Someone once said "If every man would sweep before his doorstep, the city would be clean."

A local group is taking this philosophy one step further.

Last year, over 175 Ironton residents, armed with paint brushes, brooms, work gloves and trash bags, took to the city’s streets and began a volunteer cleanup. This year, event organizers hope to bring in more people and reach a greater are in the community cleanup.

Randy Lilly, one of the event leaders and a former city councilman, said the program started in 2000 because of the news of businesses closing. He said in order to make the city look better to potential employers looking at Ironton, some city beautification projects were needed.

Last year, the group planted flowers, picked up trash and built flower beds to spruce up the city’s appearance. The volunteers planted more than 400 flowers across the city. This year, the group would like to not only work on the projects started last year but expand.

In order to achieve this goal, Lilly is looking for individuals and civic groups in the city to volunteer their time and efforts to the cleanup. He said he would also like to see businesses join the cleaning efforts.

"Help clean up your neighborhood and help out your neighbor," is the message Lilly and other volunteers are touting.

The cleanup will kickoff April 28 at 9 a.m. and the group will meet at the riverfront. He said most people will only spend a few hours of the day working on their project.

For more information on the volunteer cleanup, contact Lilly at 532-0010 or email at http://irontonvolunteerday@hotmail.com.