Hayfork's appearance

FROM JANA REESE
DOUGLAS CITY

In response to Ranie Patridis's letter last week:

We do live in a beautiful area. Rivers, lakes, mountains and valleys. Clean air and wildlife. These are the things I love about living in Trinity County.

Every few weeks I see a husband and wife quietly picking up trash along Highway 3 between Douglas City and Deerlick Springs Road. They are two of the many that volunteer their time and energy to make our road sides look nice. I see groups of high school kids cleaning up creek beds that are littered with old tires, beer cans and you name it. These things are being done to help preserve the natural beauty of where we live. I don't litter and I pick up after people wherever I go, camping, fishing, swimming. I come away with bags of other people's trash that I deposit in the nearest trash can.

In my travels I see many yards that look like dump sites and it looks like a scar on the land. It's a careless way to live.

I can tell you, Ranie, public land or private property, trash, litter or "collectibles," it affects us all, and not everyone shares your point of view. We had a fire in our community where a family's home burned to the ground. According to The Trinity Journal, the fire department had a difficult time fighting the fire due to the "collectables" in the yard.

You said the residents in Hayfork have managed to "re-invent" themselves. What does that mean? And who are you speaking for? The fact is, the way a community looks will affect it in every way possible. If you don't care, it will show.

It's hard to find a job in Hayfork or a house to rent. I know firsthand. When your "private collection" affects the community to the point where it stunts the community's full potential to provide its residents with good jobs and decent housing and makes it tough on small business, you may want to consider cleaning up your yard.