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The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

The Helena Beautification Board and 30 volunteers worked together to spruce up plant life around Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup day on March 13. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

By NATHAN HOWELL | Staff Writer

HELENA – The pre-spring weather provided the perfect backdrop as city leaders and volunteers came out to help tend to and maintain areas throughout the city of Helena at the annual Spring Cleanup.

The cleanup is put together by the Helena Beautification Board, and is one of two events throughout the year that help to maintain plant life and resources throughout the city as the seasons start to change.

Board Chair Kim Edwards said that these types of events are important not only because they provide necessary maintenance for the city’s plant life, but because they help to instill a love for the local community and encourage a sense of pride in taking care of the city.

“This board is something that a lot of people are starting to know about and care about,” Edwards explained. “It is a lot bigger than people recognize and I hope that people continue to come out and take pride in our city. We want people from outside of the city to come down and see what this little city is turning into.”

There were around 30 volunteers present for the cleanup including board members, city leaders, representation from the Helena Miracle League and the Helena Belles.

“Everyone learned a lot in the process about what it takes to take on these projects,” Edwards said. “People are often surprised at the amount of work that it takes to prepare for something like this. Everyone is grateful for this work to be done, but often do not really know how much work it takes.”

Some of the work throughout the day included tending to the flowers on the pergola in Old Town, fixing up flower beds and cutting back roses. The group also did maintenance at city hall and tended to the Rose Trial site at the sports complex.

“In the main strip of Old Town, we cut back some roses, did some weeding up at the museum and trimmed back the plants there,” Edwards explained. “The pergola and that strip are massive areas that we tend to. It always ends up being more work than we are expecting.”

Edwards said that she was always impressed by all of the volunteers and their willingness to come out and work together with others for the benefit of the city.

“In my opinion, we had a great day and a wonderful turnout. Every year the day seems to get bigger and bigger with more of the community getting involved,” Edwards said. “This is much more than just a garden club. We are trying to create an atmosphere in Helena that will draw people into the community.”

The Helena Beautification Board plans to do more events throughout the year to maintain and add to the allure that the city is building. The next event will be Spring Planting Day on April 24.

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