One project will be sprucing up the Bliss tennis courts.
LONGMEADOW – Schools, parks and the woods along the Connecticut River should look a little cleaner and brighter next month due to the efforts of the Longmeadow Green Up Foundation.
The foundation will be hosting Green Up Day on May 28. They are encouraging volunteers to spend time cleaning along the Connecticut River and at local schools and parks in town.
Michael R. ClarkOrganizer Michael Clark said that while budget constraints have made it difficult for the town to deal with non- essential maintenance, it is the residents obligation to keep the town clean.
“If we can get enough people out to clean around the river and the tennis courts and to support our efforts, we can make some serious headway and save the town the expense,” Clark said in a prepared statement.
Last May the foundation held the event for the first time and focused on weeding and cleaning the courtyard at Longmeadow High School and other buildings.
“This is our town and I think that is why it is so important that we do these projects every year, it’s a case of residents taking matters into their own hands and working for the betterment of the community,” said Green Up Chairman and co-founder John Requardt.
This year one of the main projects will be sprucing up the Bliss tennis courts which have not been maintained for several years due to budget cuts.
The Longmeadow Green Up Foundation was established in 2010 by Michael Clark, John Requardt, Marshall Wood, Ethan Requardt, and Derek Harmanali.
Clark said the foundation was created as a community organization with two goals. First to green up Longmeadow, and second, to create a sense of community by bringing people together, he said.