786th CES to host annual base-cleanup day

by Master Sgt. James Ming 786 Civil Engineer Squadron

Photo by 1st Class Lane Plummer  Senior Airman Devonte Jenkins, 786th Civil Engineering Squadron heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration journeyman, uses a weed whacker around his working area during a base-cleanup day Nov. 3, 2015, on Ramstein. Airmen and civilians around Ramstein cleaned around the base to maintain a clean working environment.
Photo by 1st Class Lane Plummer
Senior Airman Devonte Jenkins, 786th Civil Engineering Squadron heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration journeyman, uses a weed whacker around his working area during a base-cleanup day Nov. 3, 2015, on Ramstein. Airmen and civilians around Ramstein cleaned around the base to maintain a clean working environment.

First impressions leave a lasting mark. The pride we show in how we take care of our work and living spaces creates an immediate and lasting impression. This May, we are going to set aside a few hours to ensure the unspoken messages are the ones we intend to send.

Designating time specifically for the upkeep of facilities and the surrounding area improves working and living environments. This is why the 86th Airlift Wing, in coordination with U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz, coordinated a spring-cleanup event May 10 and 11 and is encouraging residents of military family housing and dormitories along with all facility managers and users to participate.

Clean where you work: May 10 is designated for the cleaning of administrative and industrial facilities, grounds and common areas across the KMC by facility managers and building occupants. Remember that the area of responsibility extends 100 feet in all directions from buildings and includes nearby parking lots and sidewalks.

Biodegradable bags, rakes, shovels, brooms, weed burners with a permit and pressure washers are available for facility managers at the U-Fix-It Store on Ramstein, Bldg. 505.

Clean where you live: May 11 will focus on cleaning common areas around military family housing and dormitories.

This is the time for you to attend to your communities, focusing on common areas like playgrounds, walkways, running trails and wooded areas. This is a great opportunity to team up with your neighbors to foster community pride in areas where you and your families live and play.

Biodegradable bags for tree and bush trimmings are available from the housing self-help stores. The self-help stores have a limited supply of tools for residents to utilize, but due to the large amount of customers, it is recommended that housing occupants bring their own gloves, rakes, brooms and leaf blowers. The Ramstein Self-Help Store is in Bldg. 859, and the Vogelweh Self-Help Store is Bldg. 1139.

The 786th Civil Engineer Squadron’s Facility Excellence Team will pick up tree limbs, bagged leaves and weeds curbside for later composting. Curbside locations will be briefed by squadron and group point of contacts. Cleanup participants should separate tree branches and shrubs into two piles at curbside: one for small wood stems up to four inches in diameter and another for larger material. Place weeds and leaves in biodegradable bags curbside for pickup but well away from dumpsters. There will be no bulk-trash pickup this during this spring cleanup.

Cleanup day objectives include litter collecting, weed pulling, trimming of overgrown shrubs, tidying plant beds, removing tree limbs and pine cones, and raking and bagging leaves. Interior suggestions include cleaning stairwells, entries and carpets, cleaning out storage rooms, washing windows, and perhaps even doing some minor touch-up painting. Housing residents will receive a letter notifying them of their specific meeting locations. At this time, members will be briefed on each group’s area of responsibility and given instructions on how to care for common areas.

Items such as batteries, glass, bulk paper and metal should be taken to the nearest recycling center, either on Ramstein in Bldg. 5146 or Kapaun in Bldg. 2820.

Many hands make quick work. If we all do our part, this cleanup will be done quickly and the results will be something we can all enjoy.