Frustrations over garbage and trash at the dam area have lead a Dell Rapids resident to schedule the first River Clean-up Day. Kiley Stone, owner of Stone Photography, couldn’t stop thinking about how sad it was that an area so beautiful is being damaged with garbage and litter.
“Growing up I never really knew the area by the dam existed. When I started getting into photography, I started exploring all the areas of town I was unfamiliar with. The area by the dam is my favorite. It is a beautiful area and there is a lot of ground to walk around and explore. I have continued, year after year, to watch this area get trashed and damaged. When I take customers there, I am always having to tell them to watch out for all the glass or we cannot use this spot because it’s littered with trash,” Stone said.
Rather than complaining about the situation, Stone has organized a “River Clean-up Day” for Saturday, October 14th, starting at 8:00 a.m. A Facebook event posted by Stone as already gotten great response from many in the community that want to help. The event has also received support from the City of Dell Rapids.
“The City of Dell Rapids said they would provide the trash bags and bring a couple of dumpsters down to throw all the bags into,” Stone said. “Since this is the first time, I am not sure how much ground we will cover, but I hope to cleanup all along the river from Highway 115 west to the trestle. If it works out great and I get a good response, I hope to keep this as an annual event and circle around to different areas of town each year.”
More information about the event can be found on the Facebook event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/116784005657149/. Stone can also be contacted at 605-254-6913 or at kiley1979@hotmail.com.