Eskasoni Clean-up Derby 2012
June 01, 2012
The Eskasoni Clean-up Derby was held on May 5 and 6, 2012 to encourage the community members to have greater pride in their community and to encourage people to get out and take care of their environment.
The first clean-up derby was held in 2007 with great results. After a 4 year hiatus, the Clean-up Derby re-emerged in 2011 with great success and this year’s Clean-up Derby was just as successful.
The concept of the Clean-up Derby is very simple. For every bag you fill you get a one ballot. This year over 250 prizes were drawn with a patio set with canopy and trampoline with net as the main prizes. Over 250 prizes valued over 4500 hundred were drawn.
Clean-up Derby coordinator and Eskasoni Band communications officer, George Paul who originally started the clean-up derby in 2007 said, “In order for this entire clean-up derby to work, we need the help of many departments, from public works to volunteers, to people responsible for picking up the garbage bags.” Paul also knows that without the help of the Eskasoni Works Environmental Team, the clean-up derby would not be possible.
Clean-up Derby coordinator, Rodney Alex who supervises the Eskasoni Works Environmental Team knows the amount of hours and physical work it takes to run such an event. “This job is physically demanding and you see firsthand how garbage affects our community. The clean-up derby is a weekend event and our environmental team worked long hours. I am proud of how committed this year’s Environmental Team was.”
The clean-up derby was a great success this year considering it rained most of Sunday. There were three stations in Eskasoni where people could pick up bags and gloves but other bags were accepted. Every bag a person filled received a ticket. So the more bags a person got the more tickets you get. The more tickets you get the better chances you had of winning. No household garbage were accepted and the only main rule of the derby is that you had to clean only in Eskasoni.
The Environmental Team recorded the total bag count and total number of people who participated in the weekend event. The numbers were staggering with a total of 4302 bags collected and out of Eskasoni and a total of 189 people participated in the two day clean-up.
Lots of great prizes were draw which encouraged outdoor activity and more connection with the outdoors. Prizes such as bikes, basketballs, volley balls, soccer balls, outdoor games, gardening tools like, rakes, wheelbarrows, and lawn mowers, fishing rods and gear, camping stuff like tents, lamps coolers and camp stoves and tons of gift cards and certificates.
Without donations, these prizes would not be possible. The Eskasoni Clean-up Derby would like to thank the following businesses and organizations for their donations or contributions. They include Eskasoni Band, Crane Cove Seafoods, Eskasoni Fish and Wildlife Commission, George MacNeil, Chippin' Dale's, Walmart, Canadian Tire, Don Cherry's, Eskasoni Foodland, Eskasoni Gaming Center, Eskasoni Health, Central Building Supplies, Tasty Treat, NADACA, Trading Post, Empire Theatres, Morris Pizza, Morris Trucking and Boston Pizza.
The Clean-up Derby officially ended at 6pm Sunday May 6 where everyone got together at the Cultural Center for hotdogs and drinks and started giving away prizes.
Clean-up Derby coordinator, George Paul wanted to thank all the workers, volunteers and all those who donated. “With something like this taking place in our community, you actually see what a difference one person could make,” said Paul.
“This is what the clean-up derby is all about. We all could make a difference,” concluded Paul.
