Kim Underwood reported 2.5 tons of trash was collected by volunteers Saturday, April 25, when Austin Community Pride Day was observed.

“I thought it went well,” said Underwood, director of the Austin Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department. “We appreciate the help of all the volunteers, and the sponsors who donated items for the clean-up.”

“Everybody did a great job for the city,” she said.

According to Underwood, between 160 and 180 volunteers took part. They picked up trash left over from went along the biking and hiking paths, city parks and other public areas.

In addition to the 2.5 tons, one pickup truck load of nine “extra large” trash bags full of recyclables was collected.

Volunteers from the Austin Coalition for Environmental Sustainability sorted the recyclables.

Underwood assigned groups of volunteers to specific areas of the city targeted for clean-up and the volunteers, all age groups, families and individuals, fanned out over the city to take part.

A group of Austin High School freshmen softball girls came across mattresses and tires walking the path to Todd Park.

Another group of volunteers walking the path from the Austin Community Bandshell Park’s Veterans Pavilion along the Cedar River to the site of the old Eagles Club also came across mattresses dumped along the riverbank.

When a group of Austin High School varsity wrestlers finished assisting Spruce Up Austin, Inc. board members in planting trees at the intersection of South Main Street and Eighth Avenue Southeast, the youths and their coaches collected trash in the Marcusen Ballpark and Lafayette Park areas.

Austin Mayor Tom Stiehm congratulated the volunteers on their efforts.

Steve King supervised the collection of trash bags full of debris, leading a caravan of three pickup trucks donated by local dealerships: Holiday Cars, Austin Ford and Usem’s Inc.

“We really appreciate their willingness to help out,” said King, who has been a part of all three city-wide cleanup projects.

The trucks were needed, too, said King, who reported volunteers picked up discarded TV sets, mattresses and tires, requiring a pickup truck to haul them away.

It was a King “family affair” with his mother, Mary, and wife, Shelley, also volunteering.

Bill Klingerman, who supervises the Mower County Sentence To Service Program, brought a crew of adult offenders, who cleaned up Todd Park.

Underwood was full of praise for all the sponsors, who made the third annual Austin Community Pride Day a success.

Triple JJJ Disposal Service, Brownsdale, donated a dumpster to collect trash at the Austin Municipal Swimming Pool parking lot. The firm also donated $300 to defray expenses.

HyVee Food Store of Austin donated trash bags and baked 200 donuts for the volunteers.

Donut Connection donated coffee and hot water for cocoa.

Walmart Inc. was another big sponsor for the event, according to Underwood.

Plans are already underway for the fourth annual Austin Community Pride Day in 2010, according to Underwood.