Virgin River Coalition Holds Cleanup

By BOBBIE GREEN

The Progress

Hafen Park was busy on Saturday morning, Sept. 10, as volunteers showed up to participate in the Virgin River Coalition (VRC) Clean-Up Day. The cloudy skies did not deter the enthusiasm to help keep the riverside environment clean and safe.

A breakfast of donuts, muffins, juice, and fruit was provided by the Mesquite Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Eureka Resort provided the bottled water. And the city of Mesquite provided trash bags and gloves for the project. Virgin Valley Disposal provided a large dumpster that the clean-up crew filled with trash from the south side of the river.

The 75 volunteers who showed up to help were divided into area groupings. Reed Dodenbier and Brogan Feishaw operated a loader and skid steer on the south side of the river to remove large items of trash.

“When it started raining hard with thunder and lightning, many of the volunteers stayed to help clean up under the pavilion area,” said VRC Coordinator Jerri Benell. “It was quite funny when about twenty phones went off with the ‘Flash Flood Alert’.”
“Many young people commented to me about how much fun they had, even though they were soaking wet.” Benell added.

Odyssey Landscaping company had sixteen volunteers attend with shovels to help with the clean-up work. Rotary Club members also volunteered to work.

But in the end it was truly a family affair, with moms, dads, and the kids all showing up willing to help.
“It was great to see so many families come out to volunteer!” Benell said.

After the cleanup was over, city staff weighed the trash that had been collected along the river bank. The total came in at over 4 tons of garbage that had been removed from the banks of the river in just a couple hours of work.

“This was an amazing benefit to Mesquite and to the Virgin River,” said Nicholas Montoya of the Mesquite Athletics and Leisure Services Department. “For all of those involved, and the ones that helped with equipment and supplies: Thank You! What a great event for the community.”

Nevada Project Manager, Tanya Anderson was also on hand coming from Las Vegas to help.
“The goals for the VRC group are to help people get out into nature and experience the value of the watershed and the opportunity it provides,” Anderson said.

The coalition is looking into planning another clean-up day for late October/early November for the area West of the Bunkerville Bridge, Benell said.

For more information about the Virgin River Coalition call 702-493-3944 or email virginrivercoalition@gmail.com.