BonnerSprings.com

To the editor:

The 2008 Edwardsville Summer Solstice Clean-Up Day was a huge success this past weekend. The event drew a steady stream of residents with loads of trash and treasures they no longer wanted. Ten Dumpsters were efficiently loaded by volunteer citizens and even some elected officials. This made for quick and organized unloading to assure a continuous flow of "depositors with hardly any waiting."

Community spirit was overflowing even though the Dumpsters weren't. the event wasn't all work. Nate Burgoon was the excellent chef who prepared the gourmet lunch for the hungry crew. "Some of the best hotdogs I've ever had" was overheard during one of the impromptu breaks during a lull in the customer procession. A makeshift "supervisor's lounge" was assembled from some of the discarded materials, complete with carpet, recliner, reading chair, table, lamp and a 25-inch television (which seemed to be in need of repair).

By the end of the day, 2 p.m. in this case, the stream of depositors stopped and the crew was finished. The biggest loser was the city of Edwardsville that is now more than 20 tons lighter. Next year's event might be scheduled earlier in the springtime

A special thanks goes out to Council member John Eickhoff for his diligent efforts to make this a well-organized community service.

Heinz Rodgers

Edwardsville mayor