OVER 50 volunteers in Cagayan de Oro participated in the cleanup drive along the shore of the Lower Bantiles in Barangay Bugo, Cagayan de Oro City, in a bid to keep the local environment clean and pleasant.
According to the World Mission Society Church of God, the cleanup activity is one of the environmental activities they have been conducting throughout the globe. It aims to protect and preserve the environment.
Lower Bantiles, which was used to be a resting area for the residents of Barangay Bugo, is now filled with domestic and industrial wastewater, garbage and waste from nearby towns and factories.
The activity was done simultaneously with the coastal cleanup and tree planting drive in Sitio Punta and Lapawon, Baybay.
The volunteers, composed of members of the World Mission Society Church of God and their neighbors, were able to collect around 60 sacks or 1,000 kilograms of trash. Every sack was filled with various waste items, such as styrofoam, car tires, detergent containers, plastic bottles, clothes and disposable diapers.
The volunteers were joined by barangay officials and personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)-Puerto Station 8.
Barangay Bugo Captain Spencer Cailing and barangay sanitation officer Joeven Vargas expressed their gratitude to the volunteers.
"I declare that the World Mission Society Church of God be a successful family and thank you so much for the privilege that may you continue to share the passion of Christ to our community of our Barangay Bugo. And I would like to extend my thanks to all of you and the whole entire family of the World Mission Society Church of God and to Mother," Cailing said.
"You collected about a ton of trash which our Racal garbage vehicle could not carry; thank you so much for your help," Vargas added.
The volunteers, for their part, were all smiles and felt satisfaction upon completing the activity.
"Though at first glance it seems impossible to clean the massive mess but with the unity of the members it was a mission complete," said a female volunteer named Kate, who came on her day off.
Another volunteer, Evonie Valles, echoed Kate's sentiment, adding that through the cleanup drive, she realized the importance of preserving the ocean and saving the Earth for the future generation. (JAS)