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Colwood girls clean up their neighbourhood

Erika Lahnsteiner, 12, and Lindsay Hargreaves, 14, organized a community clean-up, May 27.
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Erika Lahnsteiner and Lindsay Hargreaves hold garbage bags used to clean up at their Latoria Walk neighbourhood. The girls rallied 40 volunteers who filled two trucks with trash.

Armed with latex gloves and garage bags, residents of the Latoria Walk neighbourhood thought they’d be collecting empty cans and food wrappers.

Instead, they stumbled upon an old barrell washing machine, a 1950s car and a rusty bed frame.

Erika Lahnsteiner, 12, and Lindsay Hargreaves, 14, organized a community clean-up, May 27.

“We just started noticing a lot of garbage and we know that our water streams lead to the ocean,” Lahnsteiner said.

Instead of just complaining, the two girls decided to do something with the help of Lahnsteiner’s father, Gary.

“We collected enough garbage to fill the back of two half-ton trucks,” said the proud father.  For large items, such as the vehicle, City of Colwood crews came to remove them.

About 40 people from the neighbourhood hit the streets, paths, forests and park lands to aid these girls in their mission.

“When people come to our neighbourhood I want them to think it’s nice, not to think it’s dirty,” Hargreaves said.

The Red Barn Market in the neighbourhood donated some food for the volunteers to enjoy at the end of the day.

reporter@goldstreamgazette.com