Help Keep Guilford Green
Calling all environmental warriors-your help and your heart are needed. You are being called to duty to celebrate Earth Day by aiding the Guilford Land Conservation Trust and the Guilford Rotary Club to help clean up the town and keep Guilford green and beautiful.
On Saturday, May 3 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., residents who care are asked to roll up their sleeves, put on their boots, and help clean up the town. A rally of participants will meet at
8 a.m. on the Town Green, where maps of locations in need of a little extra attention will be given out. Gloves and garbage bags will be available, and to get things rolling, coffee and donuts will be provided.
"We all own this town, and it is up to us to keep it clean and take care of it," said event Chair Selectman Cynthia Cartier. "We all need to give back and take some time to go beyond the boundaries of our own yards to help clean up the town, because Guilford is an incredible place to live and we need to take pride in our community."
Guilford Land Conservation Trust ambassador Duncan Markovich urged everyone to come out and participate in the clean-up day because, "for the past several decades we have been neglecting our planet. This is the only planet we have and we all share it, so we should all act as its stewards and take care of it.
"This is a great cause, and I hope we see a huge turnout so we can expand this event to include both Madison and Branford next year," Markovich said.
Several local businesses have stepped up to donate goods for the event, including Waste Tech, Royal Printing, Bishop's Orchards, Safety Zone, Page's Hardware, Zuse, Inc., and Big Y. In addition, the Guilford Fire Department and the Town of Guilford will donate time and services to the event.
"I am so excited that businesses are stepping up to help us make this event a success," said Cartier.
To make things a little more interesting, the top five individuals or teams who collect the most bags of trash will win prizes donated by local sponsors. Some goodies up for grabs are gift certificates to Trailblazers and City Climb (in New Haven) and Ballou's Restaurant in Guilford.
Areas that have already been identified as needing a good, thorough spring cleaning are the Jacobs Beach area, West River, and various points along Route 1.
"We will have designated areas to clean up in the town, however, participants are free to select their own venue to beautify," said Cartier. "This is an opportunity for us to honor Mother Nature and demonstrate to the youth in the area that we are a strong community that takes care of each other and our town."
If Mother Nature does not cooperate on the May 3, the rain date has been set for Sunday, May 4. Those interested in participating in the day's event can either show up at the Green or call Cartier in advance at 203-916-2430.