DOINews: NPS-Anacostia Park: More Than 400 Volunteers Join Secretary Jewell, Director Jarvis, Other Leaders for MLK Day of Service Project at Park

Above are before-and-after photos of this year's MLK National Day of Service cleanup project at Anacostia Park in Washington, D.C. (Secretary Sally Jewell appears on the left-hand side of the top photo, working alongside volunteers and wearing a green jacket.) Photos by NPS.

More than 400 volunteers joined Secretary Sally Jewell, National Park Service Director Jarvis, General Services Administrator Dan Tangherlini, and Student Conservation Association President and CEO Jaime Matyas for National Day of Service project at Anacostia Park on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

After welcome and thank you remarks, everyone was equipped with gloves, bags and tools. Park staff and volunteers formed 20 groups and went out to different areas in the park to clean up trash, remove invasive plant species, and explore the banks of the Anacostia River.

“There can be no more meaningful tribute to Dr. King – a man who devoted his life to building community and serving others – than joining together in service,” said Matyas. “Our actions at Anacostia will help to protect this vital local resource and ring in harmony with Dr. King's legacy.”

The event was organized by the staff of National Capital Parks - East and the Student Conservation Association of Washington. More than 3.5 tons of trash was collected and miles of trails were cleaned.

Participants came from the local area and as far away as New York and Philadelphia. Volunteers of all ages enjoyed working side by side with park staff, discussing and learning about the effects garbage has on the park and neighboring communities.

At the end of the event, smiling volunteers expressed a sense of pride when they saw the large amount of trash they collected and the positive results of their work.

Anacostia Park encompasses more than 1,200 acres and acts as an urban flood plain, wildlife habitat, and a popular community recreation spot along the Anacostia River in Southeast Washington, D.C.

By: Miguel Marquez, park guide, Anacostia Park, NPS
Jan. 22, 2015

Related Links:

NPS-The Morning Report
NPS-Anacostia Park
SCA story on the event