Churches tackle trash in Pick Up and Walk
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This article was published 12/05/2023 (737 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
More than 1,100 volunteers fanned out around Steinbach on Saturday morning with a goal of cleaning up garbage on streets, boulevards and ditches within city limits.
The annual event attracted 1,143 volunteers and collected 12.82 tonnes of garbage, beating out last years total of 12.42 tonnes.
Southland Church Pastor Martin Gunter was one of the event organizers, and he said the city told them the amount of garbage collected was significant because last year’s total was wet garbage from intense spring rains, while this year it was largely dry.
Gunter described this year’s event, which also included a lunch for all volunteers as “fantastic”.
“We had lots of people show up and people showed up with great attitudes,” he said.
While this event at one time attracted in excess of 2,000 people, Gunter said the numbers were still very positive, explaining 19 churches and several community groups participated.
While churches often have different views, this was one example where they could be unified.
“It’s incredible to walk around there and speak to people from other churches, some pastors and congregants,” he said. “It was incredible to see… we’re all here to be the hands and feet of Jesus.”
Gunter described the lunch afterward as a great time of fellowship.
While this was the first time Gunter and fellow organizer Mallory Dyck took the reigns for the event, he said he’s no stranger to it, having picked up trash himself for close to 15 years.
He said he was excited to take part in this way.
“We want to give something back to the community in a very tangible way and this is a way that the churches can come together and do this,” he said.
Gunter said people don’t always see the work churches do in the community, thinking they are there to only think of themselves.
“They don’t see the tangible ways that churches in so many ways reach out to the community and this is just more of a visible one,” he said. “We love our community.”