A beautiful clear cool morning brought eighteen volunteers to a roadside gathering. Brother Brad Weddell organized the volunteers to tread the two-mile stretch of SR 87, outside NAS Whiting Field's west gate entrance. Their mission was to help the community clean up the roadside for the two miles north of the traffic light. Don in bright orange mesh vests, gloves, walking shoes and a solemn enthusiasm, we filled the orange plastic trash bags with the debris tossed from passing motorists to the roadside. As I walked along the roadside picking up the discarded debris, I thought of the tragic debris littered across Texas from the Columbia space shuttle. The source of the sullenness we shared, was the news we heard on our radios just prior to commencing our walk; the crew of the Columbia shuttle was lost upon reentry to the earth's atmosphere. Yet, our civic duty continued in the face of tragic events ever present on our mind.

We focused on the beauty of the day and the task ahead of us. Since it had been two years of construction on State Road Highway 87 had prevented us from the removal of roadside debris, we had a tremendous task ahead of us.

"We have a sign erected and maintained by the Dept. of Transportation that shows everyone passing, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local Lodge 2777 is here at NAS Whiting Field and we work not only at this facility, but in the community too by providing this service of roadside cleanup," stated committee chairman Brad Weddell. "We have undertaken this project for several years with a two year reprieve for the road construction. Therefore, since we have completed this task, the future cleanups should not be as challenging for us."

"Our Union's obligation is to perform a roadside cleanup three times a year in order to have our sign maintained and located here," said Brad Weddell. "I want to thank all those that showed up today to help in our endeavor and hope that more members and their families show up for our next roadside cleanup," he continued.

The following volunteers are members of IAM Local Lodge 2777, their spouses, children and close friends:

Brad Weddell         Robert Wood        Joyce Wood        Mark Bettis        Joel Mathews         Lisa Mathews
Andrew Mathews   Sherrin Hartfree    Rose Cardona    Dennis Davis    John S. Hoyt, Jr.      Jon Jefferson    
Phil Wood              Judy Wood           Terry Beaty           Lucas Beaty (and his friend Merlin)                          
Lori Ammons         Danny Givens