My name is
Harriet Smith, a Michigan’s AmeriCorps member serving with Huron Pines, a
conservation organization in Northeast Michigan. I serve as an Education and
Outreach Specialist at Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (TBNMS). The
mission of TBNMS is to preserve nationally significant shipwrecks and regional
maritime landscape through resource protection, education, and research. The
sanctuary also promotes appreciation and responsible use of Thunder Bay, the
Great Lakes, and the ocean. One of the central goals of TBNMS is to maintain a
strong relationship with the local community through our education and outreach
programs. From daily fieldtrips to the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center, to
visiting classrooms across Northeast Michigan, the education staff and I engage
students through creative programming designed to spark interest in maritime
history and cultural preservation. 
On August 4,
2012, Huron Pines partnered with TBNMS and the Alpena Rotary Club to conduct a
clean-up of the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail and Rotary Island. The
trail and island provide vital services to the community of Alpena.
Approximately half a mile long and running along the Thunder Bay River, the
Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail serves as an outdoor location to not only
experience Alpena’s wonderful natural resources, but also an opportunity for
visitors to connect with local history. Interpretive signs line the trail with
information about this historic stretch of riverbank and tell visitors about
what life was like in nineteenth-century northern Michigan. Remnants of this
busy period of history can still be found along the trail. Rotary Island, a
small island along the shore of the Thunder Bay River, is another essential
site in Alpena for visitors to experience the outdoors and learn about the
local history. Several interpretive signs can also be found on the island,
along with beautiful gardens and pathways. 
The Great
Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail and Rotary Island are used year-round by local
residents and visiting tourists. In the spring, the trail and island serve as
outdoor locations for school fieldtrips. TBNMS hosts hundreds of students each
year. Sanctuary staff use the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail and Rotary
Island as the setting for a number of different educational activities.
Students participate in scavenger hunts, water-testing experiments, and learn
about the local ecosystem. In the summer, recreational fishermen, bike riders,
runners, roller bladders, and those out to enjoy Northern Michigan utilize
Rotary Island and the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail. When the snow starts
to fall, the trail and island continue to be used by cross county skiers and
those going for a hike with their snowshoes.
With so many
people frequently using the Great Lakes Maritime Trail and Rotary Island, proper
maintenance of the property is crucial, making our summer clean-up project all
the more important. I began planning for the clean-up in July. It was my
responsibility to plan and run the project, which included recruiting
volunteers, securing funding, and deciding what clean-up projects the
volunteers would tackle. The central goal of this event was not only to
complete several projects on the island and trail, but also to generate
long-term interest in the continued improvement of these two areas. While I was
planning the clean-up, I tried to think of ways to get members of the community
involved in the event. I put up posters, spoke to the local newspaper, and
advertised online. Although several people RSVP’ed to the event, I was still
nervous about the turn out.
At 10 a.m. on
the morning of August 4th, all the set-up was finished and
volunteers began to arrive. After dividing them up into smaller groups, the
volunteers began to work on their projects. Throughout the day, volunteers
reinvigorated gardens and flowerbeds by removing brush and weeds, improved the
overall appearance and safety of the trail by boarding up broken windows on an
abandoned building, treated several kinds of aggressive invasive species,
removed trash from the island and trail, and constructed a raised flowerbed.
The purpose of the raised flowerbed is to provide an opportunity for those with
physical disabilities to take part in community service. Since the Great Lakes
Maritime Heritage Trail and Rotary Island are handicapped-accessible, the addition
of the flowerbeds will allow those with physical disabilities to not only enjoy
the trail and island, but also to participate in its upkeep.
We
accomplished a lot during the cleanup but for me the highlight was seeing the
reaction from members of the community. It was a hot day so many locals were
out and about, enjoying the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail and Rotary
Island as we worked to complete our projects. Throughout the day, volunteers
received compliments and praise. Visitors on the trial and Island were very
interested in our project, and several asked to be put on mailing list so they
could participate in future community service events. One man who was out
riding his bike actually decided to stop and help us pick up trash for several
hours. “If I use this trail I might as well help with maintaining it,” he told
me. I have participated in many community service projects and it is not often
that volunteers receive this amount of recognition and thanks from members of
the local community.
In the end
the best way to raise awareness about resource preservation was going out and
interacting with the locals. Not only did the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage
Trail and Rotary Island Cleanup help to improve two vital resources in Alpena,
but it also sparked local interest in continued maintenance and improvement of
the trail and island.
