Disney's Give a Day, Get a Day at Mary Holland Park in Bartow, FL

We spent our morning, last Saturday, April 3rd, helping Keep America Beautiful in Bartow, Florida.

We signed up with the volunteer program from Disney ... Give a Day, Get a Day.  We gave up our morning, and spent a few hours cleaning up the park, to get a free day at a Disney park.

Obviously this cleanup program is pretty successful.  Here are the results they got from last year's 2009 programs.

We helped the Bartow Solid Waste Department  with the Great America Cleanup.

Unfortunately, we didn't bring any cameras, or take any pictures.  It didn't end up being really glamorous.  I was pretty sweaty, and probably a little smelly when it was all over.  It was pretty nice, though, they gave you some good gloves to pick up the garbage and nasty stuff.  AND they even hooked us up with barbecue lunch when it was all over.

We gathered up a BUNCH of garbage.  I was pulling stuff out of the lakes, out of the bushes, and even out of the trees.  By the time our schedule cleanup was over, my garbage bag was so heavy I could hardly carry it.

The funniest part was scooting right up to the edge of the water, to try and stretch a stick out into the water and pull plastic bottles to the shore.  About that time, Christy says ... "Al, you better be careful, you have no idea what could be just beneath the water there.  That looks like a perfect spot for an alligator."

All the sudden, I didn't feel like stretching out there quite so far.  And I started poking my stick down into the water, trying to make sure nothing was sitting there waiting to grab me.

Thanks Chris!


Anyhow, it was a great event.  And something I would definitely do again in the future.  It gave us all something nice and worthwhile to do.  Plus the lunch and the Disney tickets are SWEET bonus perks.

Al