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Peterson in the Community takes on “Coastal Cleanup Day”
Armed with gloves, trash grabbers, and recycling bags, Peterson people put in a great showing at this year’s California Coastal Cleanup Day project at the San Leandro Marina. On September 14, about 50 people came to help pick up trash along the trails and shoreline of the popular recreation area. The city provided the litter bags and Peterson provided the muscle and goodwill to do a thorough job along the five-mile stretch of waterway.
With nice weather and little wind, the team got started early in the day. It was a free-form event, with volunteers choosing where they wanted to focus and how fast they wanted to go. Peterson staff brought along spouses and children to make a day of it. The family atmosphere made it fun, according to Pat Duke, EPG Salesman, PPSi. “Afterwards, my wife made the comment that it’s really nice for Peterson to sponsor these kinds of events, where our whole families can help give back to the community.” Pat stopped by the marina a week after the cleanup day, and said it was still looking good. “It made you proud to think we helped contribute, especially in our own neighborhood.”
Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, reports Kathy Gorham, Power’s General Accountant. “Good weather, good exercise, and a nice BBQ lunch afterwards. Plus, lots of bags of the typical bottles, styrofoam, and coffee lids you usually find strewn around a beach. It was pretty satisfying to get that stuff out of there.”
There were a couple of exotic finds for the crew. Among the oddball items retrieved (or carefully stepped over) were a doll, an entire chair, some helium tanks, a stingray, and a dead seagull or two. There are also reports of a dead shark sighting.
Christina Alatorre, Sales and Marketing Coordinator and champion of the event, was very pleased by the turn out. “If you walk quickly through the marina, you don’t really notice a lot of trash. But, once you get down into the rocks and start looking closely, there was definitely debris to pick up. Our big group of volunteers really made a difference.”
The real troopers of the event were Matt George (Power’s General Manager of Commercial Engine Service) and his wife. “There was a muddy, yucky area of the marina that no one really wanted to tackle. The Georges offered to clean up there, and they did an awesome job,” says Christina.
The volunteers were a little stiff and sore the next day from all that bending and lifting, but satisfied with a job well done.
Thanks to Power’s marketing team of Christina Alatorre, Alexandra Muñoz, and Edwin Cortez, as well as Cindy Figueiredo and Larry Hart for helping make this event so successful.
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