06
OCTOBER 2012
service
Beat the Heat at the Beach:
Bolsa Chica Beach Clean-Up
John Tran
CSU Fullerton
It was 99 degrees as the sun transcended upon all our
faces on the shores of Bolsa Chica, radiating a bright yellow glow that would remain there through the seemingly
short hours of our journey.
At first I was filled with a sense of apprehension and
dread reminiscing on the distant yet unforgettable past
experiences I have had on similar yet equally sandy
shores, and yet these fears were overcome by the hospitality and company soon exhibited before me. We all
soon met up with our fellow Circle K’ers by the junction
between Towers 21 and 22, sunglasses on our heads,
smiles on our faces, and our hearts eager and ready to
give.
Stephanie, the ambassador, introduced herself to all of
us as well as a bubbly man named Skip, the one in charge
of La Mirada’s Kiwanis. We soon found ourselves laboriously carrying various objects and supplies from his car to
the destination of the pits situated before us. In the short
time as we were awaiting everyone else’s arrival we got
the chance to socialize with our fellow peers, building a
strong sense of camaraderie between one another.
Skip and Stephanie soon divided us into various groups,
as we roamed the shores from one spot to another
looking for various pieces of trash. One person in each
group was given the fundamental task of logging each
item found – these ranged from traditional items such as
Styrofoam, plastics, bottle caps, and cigarette butts, to
some rather unique ones such as floss, toy parts, and balloons.
As we walked through the beach inspecting for distinctive pieces of trash, we worked together, dipped our feet
into the water whenever our feet became overburdened
with sweat, conversed with one another, and made a
significant difference. By the end of two hours, our trash
bags were full, and our hearts content.
As the morning hours departed and the afternoon
raged on, we were provided hot dogs, chips, and drinks
by Skip with a smile on his face, proud of what we had
just accomplished. Then, free time came as we all faced
the shores of the beach, dipped our feet into the water,
and bonded over the radiating sunlight before us.
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