Volunteers across Lethbridge celebrated Earth Day on Wednesday by rolling up their sleeves and collecting trash and debris along the river valley. The official Coulee Cleanup Campaign kicked off with dozens of people doing their part to preserve and protect local ecosystems. Co-ordinated by the Helen Schuler Nature Centre, these events run all the way up until May 31, and they’ve made a huge impact. Last year, more than 1,000 residents participated, collecting nearly 500 full bags of trash. It’s also an opportunity to educate others about the importance of keeping coulees clean year-round. “We’ve had a good volunteer turnout so far. We’re cleaning up Indian Battle Park today, focusing on it. But we have many different groups that will be cleaning up different little slices of the coulees,” said Chelsea Sherbut, Helen Schuler Nature Centre resource development co-ordinator. “We divide the coulees up into just over 100 sections.” “National Volunteer Week is very significant to recognizing and celebrating the many volunteers that we have in Lethbridge and the area,” said Sandi Davis, Volunteer Lethbridge executive director. In the spirit of National Volunteer Week, the Helen Schuler Nature Centre also unveiled a mural on Wednesday known as the Seeds of Volunteerism Wall. It’s a symbolic installation consisting of 46,900 seeds—that’s the number of estimated volunteers who lent their time to several important causes in Lethbridge last year.
