Over twenty people braved a cold, dreary, rainy day Saturday to love their neighbors and help them clean up their property.
The idea to help out neighbors and beautify Muleshoe just sort of happened during a conversation between Dani Heathington and Tony King. After they talked about it some more, they took the idea to others in Muleshoe and came up with a committee: themselves as well as Shelly Turnbow, Rebecca Beall, Crista Saylor, Irene Anguiano, Tana Olivas, and Julio Ortega. The committee then came up with how to set the wheels in motion to reach the goal of helping all over town.
Dani and Tony then took the idea to a city council meeting to explain their idea for cleaning up property that residents might need help with, while at the same time encouraging community pride and involvement. Landowners would be contacted to see if they needed some help and would give permission for workers to help them mow, trim trees, pick up leftovers, or do something else that needed attention. People would also be encouraged to contact the committee to ask for help. Dani emphasized that sometimes people are experiencing bad health, have aged and can no longer do some of the work, or have become overwhelmed by what life has sent their way and simply can’t get it all done. She also mentioned places around town that have become neglected or abandoned and don’t meet city ordinances and have become safety hazards which could also be addressed. The plan is to have these clean-up days on a quarterly basis and are not to be mistaken for ongoing free lawn maintenance. “We hope this can be a way to help our neighbors and neighborhoods while at the same time making the town we all love more appealing to our eyes, visitors, and travelers passing through,” said Dani.
City manager Ramon Sanchez and the city council agreed this sounded like a good idea. Trash and items removed that will fit in city dumpsters around town can be put there, and larger items like discarded metal equipment, dead trees and trimmings can go to the landfill, which will be open on clean-up days. Workers would work with and follow city employees guidelines and respect boundaries of responsibilities.
That meeting was on October 12; the first clean up day was scheduled for November 14. Property owners had been contacted, some had called in, volunteers had responded, and despite the weather not cooperating, things got under way. Pick-ups with trailers and vehicles with willing workers assembled at the East Side City Park, Dani gave a quick prayer to get things started, assigned groups to work at various addresses, and the project began. People with lawnmowers and rakes were busy. Five-Area cut down dead trees and trimmed bad limbs. Trailers were filled and headed to the landfill.
By the end of the day, all identified yards had been dealt with and five alleys were taken care of. Due to the weather, all the problem trees were not covered and will have to be dealt with later. The next clean-up day will be in three months, February, with the exact date to be announced then. The part of Muleshoe to be focused on next will be the area of town west of Highway 214 and south of Highway 84. Anyone needing assistance is urged to call City Hall, Dani Heathington, or Tony King.
And if you would like to share your time to help your neighbor, by all means, join the crowd! We’ll hope the sun will be shining that day.
Thanks to Dani Heathington for her help with this story, and thanks to those who braved the weather to love their neighbor.
date to be announced
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