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FROM STAFF REPORTS

After a two-week delay because of snow, Keep Carter County Beautiful volunteers got together Saturday to remove the litter and trash deposited over the winter on their adopted section of Milligan Highway.

Sixteen volunteers took part. Mayor Patty Woodby, Commissioners Ginger Holdren and Ross Garland, Elizabethton City Councilman Mike Simerly, sheriff candidate Thomas Smith, and one very good puppy dog worked side by side with volunteers picking up trash, said Don Hlavaty, chairman of KCCB.

“Thirty-one bags of trash and a tire were removed from the shoulder and ravines along the roadway from Highway 321 to Okolona Road. It is hard to believe that this same section of road was just cleaned up in November 2021,” Hlavaty said.

“To all the volunteers that worked this event, thank you. I know many in the community appreciate your hard work and dedication. A special thank you also goes out to Elizabethton Police Chief Jason Shaw for providing extra patrols to make sure everyone was safe. I would also like to thank the neighbor that got us energized with candy. Treats always make the work sweeter,” Hlavaty continued.

However, while a successful cleanup goes a long way, preventing litter during everyday life makes the efforts made last much longer.

“I would like to appeal to everyone who drives our county roads, please do not throw trash out your window. If we dispose of trash properly, there would be no need to have this cleanup three to four times per year. Working together, we can solve this littering problem.”