Volunteers lend muscles to Beautify Bonney Lake event

By Judy Halone-The Courier-Herald

Clouds may have cast the illusion of an early-fall shadow Saturday, but in Bonney Lake a rainbow of pink and blue spread throughout the city's neighborhoods.

Approximately 400 volunteers, adorned in pink and blue T-shirts, participated in the fourth annual Beautify Bonney Lake Day as a way to make the community a cleaner and brighter place to live and work.

Workers came from local businesses, Boy and Girl Scout troops, churches, neighborhood associations and school groups, and there were more than 100 Bonney Lake High School student athletes present. Tasks varied - from planting trees, shrubs and flowers to hauling heavy rock and building a wheelchair ramp for a local senior citizen.

Beautify Bonney Lake Day events coordinator Laurie Carter said she was pleased with the turnout.

“We had teamwork,” Carter said. “It turned out just right, and we got a chance to do every project we needed to.”

The Bonney Lake High School football team split in two, with half the players hauling heavy rock on Ascent Gateway, in preparation of a new pondless waterfall that accompanies the “Welcome to Bonney Lake” sign and statue atop Elhi Hill.

“These guys are strong,” Waterscapes Northwest owner and project designer Dan Roper said. “They're really helping out and working hard.”

Other teammates lent muscle power to litter patrol and shoveling bark along Sumner-Buckley Highway and Locust Avenue. Ruth Conrad and her swimmers spread bark at the Public Safety Building while coach Sharon Lovinger helped the boys and girls golf teams beautify the post office.

Other work sites included Madrona Park, Bonney Lake Elementary, the Bonney Lake Senior Center and homeowners' associations.

Although the crowds worked feverishly, fun was still the order of the day when volunteers helped serve 107 pizzas and beverages to hungry workers.

“Some of the football players were trying to eat eight pieces each, and I heard them say, ‘Hey! Let's go for 10!'” Amanda Dyckman, leader for Girl Scout Troop 4390 said with a laugh.

While the teams sweated and toiled, passersby lent their support with hoots, hollers and honking.

The event was a success and an example of what can happen when government, businesses and citizens work together, Carter said.

“Kiwanis, Beautify Bonney Lake or any of the civic groups on the Plateau are just a pebble in the pond,” Carter said. “Networking like this helps build livable communities like Bonney Lake.”

Judy Halone can be reached at jhalone@courierherald.com.

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