Along Bouquet Canyon Road, from Seco Canyon to Alamogordo, Santa Clarita volunteers were tasked with cleaning up the sidewalk and adding mulch in a program called the Saugus Community Beautification Day. Residents from different age groups and ethnic backgrounds were given the opportunity to come together and give back to their community.
“Today, we had volunteers as young as 7 and up who wanted to come. It’s wonderful that we live in a community where people want to be part of a change, especially now that they just want to be in the community,” said Gabby Vera, SCV Volunteer Engagement Coordinator.
Not only did community members give back to make the area around them more pleasant, but they also helped the trees around them survive the record heat wave that California has seen in the past few summers.
“The importance of that is that we have mulch that becomes a blanket in the winter time, and during the summertime, it helps retain moisture for the plants,” said Vera.
Ivan Grgas, a Saugus resident, noted that the Beautification Day left him feeling good about himself and his neighborhood.
“For a while, it’s just been kind of just dirt, and so we are adding mulch today. I don’t know if there is anything else that they are gonna add later on. It’s a good day out. Not exactly sunny, but it’s a nice day, and we are just enjoying ourselves out here this morning,” said Grgas.
While it may have been his first time volunteering for the city, Ivan managed to make new friends who lived in his community.
“I think it’s a great way to kind of get together and meet new people and work together to make the community look better,” said Grgas.
Not only was Bouquet Canyon the center of attention for this event, there was also a separate group picking up trash along the river bed.
“Volunteers met us at Central Park, but some of them actually also went out behind the Chi Chi’s parking lot to go into the Santa Clara riverbed to pick up trash. So, there was a multi-layered component to this event,” said Vera.
During the season of giving and togetherness, it’s important to be thankful for your surroundings and to help give back to the community.
