Plains residents help neighbors in spring cleanup

They didn't get as many volunteers as hoped, but the Plains Spring Cleanup Day on Saturday was still a big success, said Lana Dicken, one of the primary coordinators of the daylong project.

"It was fantastic. Lots of people showed up and worked hard all day," said Dicken, who had gone door to door over the last two weeks to recruit volunteers and to find those who wanted help getting garbage and other materials hauled away. "People were excited about coming out to serve and do the community cleanup," she added.

Forty-three volunteers ranging from 4 years old to 81 showed up at the town's new public works building next to the fire department to get their assignments. Twenty-one residents signed up for help, including two or three that had been recently cited for being in violation of the town's Decay Ordinance. Two residents who were cited volunteered to help with Spring Cleanup Day, said Dicken, who hopes it becomes an annual event. "I was never a part of the cleanup before, but some of the properties we visited are now the most clean and organized I have ever seen them," said Chris Reyna, a Plains police officer who volunteered to head cleanup day.

Mayor Chris Allen, who was on hand for the operation, said they haven't had a town wide cleanup day for five years. A couple people suggested to Dicken that they do a cleanup day twice a year. The group started shortly after 9 a.m. and finished the last house shortly after 4 p.m. and it was the biggest haul, taking the volunteers two 14-foot trailer loads, one filled 20-foot trailer and two loaded pickups to clear the debris, which included branches, wood, metal, mattresses, old shoes and other assorted materials, to the dump. Dicken said there were several houses that required multiple trips to the dump or to the large county donated dumpster positioned in the lot across from the fire department.

Help for the day came in the form of a 20-foot dump trailer from Jason Subatch, owner of Wild Horse Trading Company, and Scott Johnson, who had a 14-footer on hand. There were also several other small trailers and a fleet of pickup trucks. Cory Burris used an ATV to pull a trailer converted from an airplane heater to transport garbage to the county dumpster. Much of the collected materials were put in the borrowed dumpster, but many of the volunteers took their booty directly to the dump. Allen said the county waived the appliance fee. "There isn't much room left in those dumpsters at the transfer site," said Johnson, a retired school teacher.

One place that took a couple trips was the home of Joe Shepherd, who had several large and small items. The Decay Ordinance complaint against Shepherd included some of his antique vehicles, some that go back to the 1920s. "I like his old cars, they're antiques," said Dicken, who added that maybe he should put flowers or planters in the car. She said that if he maintained the lawn around the cars they would look more like lawn ornaments. Pat Killgore, who had also been cited, took three loads of trash over to the staging area.

"It went great and much better than expected, especially with the rain. Everything came together and a lot of people came out to help, even some from surrounding communities," said Reyna. Tim Kinsinger of Plains, one of the volunteer coordinators, felt the operation went smoothly and the volunteers worked well together.

Bruce Newton, a public works staff member, manned a front end loader throughout the day at the loaned dumpster site. Newton and Bridger Bauer sorted materials such as lawn and shrub clippings, metals, appliances and tires at the site. Dicken believed they collected 115 tires, which Baldy Mountain Tires received for $2 a tire.

Newton was one of three town employees to volunteer for the day, along with clerks Cathy Emmett and Jonalie Comeau. Council member Garrett Boon also helped out. Ten members of the Plains Pickleball Association helped by picking up trash in Fred Young Park and along Highway 200. Members of the Kings Life Group also volunteered.

Reyna said that most of the recipients were senior citizens or disabled people, but he said there were some able people who just needed additional help. "A lot of the people we helped were definitely not going to be able to do it alone. What may have taken them weeks took a group of volunteers minutes," said Reyna.

"I think it went really well. We had great cooperation between the town and the county," said Allen, who added there were several volunteers from outside the town limits, including most of the pickleball club members. There were two men from Thompson Falls who were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and two men from Hot Springs.

Henry and Laura Raber donated their food truck, "406 Chuck Wagon," to cook the hot dogs that McGowan Grocery donated for the volunteers. The Rabers also cooked Sloppy Joes for the help. Rehbein Ford donated 15 cases of water. Gambles Hardware and Studs Building & Home donated gloves and trash bags for the event and Blackfoot Communications donated $1,000.

"I think actions speak louder than words and everyone who participated, particularly those who got their hands dirty, deserve a lot of credit," said Reyna. "It's important to serve your community, but it is also great to actually get out and have a conversation with your neighbors," he said. "We all have different struggles in life and sometimes a hand up is a better solution than strict enforcement."