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Community Corner

Volunteers Clean Up Shorefront Park

Annual Great Brookhaven Clean Up takes place to keep Shorefront and Rider Avenue parks clear.

Volunteers took to cleaning up as part of the Great Brookhaven Clean Up on Saturday.

Patchogue Village Director of Parks and Recreation Maria Giustizia and Parks Commissioner William Hilton helped organize the third annual cleanup effort at Shorefront and Rider Avenue parks.

"Shorefront Park is the most popular of our parks and the most visible with the adjoining Rider Avenue ballfield and pond," Giustiza said. She also said that cleanups happen at the park twice a year as a result of its popularity.

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Patchogue Village residents Chris Schiefer and Stacy Botta teamed up to tackle the trash on Saturday.

"I'm a big promoter of the environment and recycling," Schiefer, a sixth-grade Oregon Middle School science teacher, said. "I try to do a lot of different things in my classroom to help teach my students. This is one of the first times that I'm out here actually do a cleanup."

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Students Olivia Dono, Lily Middleman and Rose Smith also attended to help out while also earning community service hours.

Middleman said she wanted to do the community service local to Patchogue.

"I really didn't want to drive and use gas because that would defeat the purpose," Middleman said.

Smith was surprised at the amount of garbage built up at the park.

"I didn't realize how much garbage was around here," Smith said. "It's great to be able to pick it up and see a difference."

Hilton said that the event is to promote the continual cleanup of the Village's parks.

"We appreciate the volunteers that came out to help us today and hope that we will see more volunteers at the next one," Hilton said.

Anyone that would like to continue cleaning work on Shorefront Park can call Brookhaven Town at 631-451-TOWN to request cleaning supplies.

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