With winter weather yielding to spring, sunshine and warm temperatures greeted volunteers in two Elbert County communities on May 2 who gathered to clean up their towns.

In Elizabeth, residents met at the town hall at 7:30 a.m. for the annual Elizabeth Town Cleanup, and by 8 a.m. groups of volunteers were hard at work.

While Elizabeth Trustee Rachel White mobilized her group of volunteers to sweep the gravel and other debris from the sidewalks along Highway 86, Trustee Steve Gaither worked alongside Public Works Director Michael Gibbs, helping residents unload trash into dumpsters provided to the town at a discount by Greenleaf Waste Solutions.

The Elizabeth cleanup centered on four projects: trash pickup and general maintenance of paths in Shepard Park, sidewalk sweeping along Highway 86, a trash collection point on Garland Street, and the instillation of privacy slats to the fence surrounding Elizabeth Public Works.

The annual Elizabeth cleanup drew individual volunteers, 4-H members and church groups, such as Creekside Community Church Youth Group and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Following the cleanup, the volunteers returned to the town hall for a barbecue.

Gibbs, who has been working with the cleanup for nine years, said fewer residents took advantage of the opportunity to drop off trash this year than in previous years, but they still managed to fill two dumpsters.

The Town of Elbert also held a cleanup day on May 2 sponsored by the Elbert Town Committee and Elbert Fire Protection District. Students from Elbert High School and Middle School got an early start to the work by picking up trash along streets throughout community on April 30.

During the May 2 event in Elbert, dumpsters were also available to residents, and nearly 30 volunteers picked up trash as well as helped fellow residents tidy yards and mow lawns. Following the work, the Elbert Volunteer Fire Department provided barbecue lunch.

The Town of Kiowa will be holding its Town Clean-Up Day on May 16 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Town Shop. Dumpsters will available to Kiowa residents to drop off nonhazardous materials, including metal, trash and lumber.

Kiowa residents may also dispose of car batteries and used motor oil, but items such as tires, paint or gas and propane tanks cannot be accepted. There is a $5 charge for box springs, mattresses or small sofas.