Every spring, the City of Thompson has hosted Clean Community Day and Clean Community Month, an opportunity for community members to come out, clean up Thompson, and help us get a jump start on the litter left over from the winter. This year, in the spirit of social distancing, things are a little different.
Starting on Friday, May 22, we’ll be asking residents to focus on two areas of town every week until June 26, based on the schedule close to the end of this article. We’ll give people a heads-up to some key areas to get started.
Here’s what our schedule looks like:
Week 1: Downtown (Bin placed in Canadian Tire Parking Lot)
Week 2: Deerwood – Juniper (Bins placed at respective schools)
Week 3: Eastwood and Riverside (Bins placed at respective schools)
Week 4: Westwood and Burntwood (Bins placed at respective schools)
Week 5: Southwood and Apartments (Bins placed at Southwood Park)
Like every year, garbage bags and rubber gloves are available free from City Hall and the Public Works Office! Pick up gloves and bags in the City Hall foyer starting on Friday, or call Public Works at 204-677-7970 to arrange pick-up from their office. If you’re picking up supplies from City Hall, we ask that you be respectful and take only what you need.
We’re working with a local business to act as a weekend pick-up location for gloves and bags if you can’t make it during the week. Stay tuned for more information!
The City and the School District of Mystery Lake will be putting out dumpsters every Monday at the locations listed below. If you need to get rid of garbage you’ve collected on other days, a dumpster will be available at the Public Works yard all week long!
Send In Your Photos, Win Prizes!
To participate, we’re asking everyone to take a photo of the area you’re cleaning before you clean up, and a photo or two of the clean area when you’re done. Email them with the names of you and your team to communications@thompson.ca, and we’ll be feature your before and after photos on our social media page throughout the week!
At the end of every week, participants who submitted their names and photos will have a chance to win a Hub of the North hoodie and camping mug set!
At the end of the month, all participants who sent in photos will be eligible for the grand prize draw donated by Canadian Tire, a cooler packed with everything you need for you and your family to get out and enjoy a picnic on the grass!
Cleaning up while CoVID-safe
Remember: we are in the midst of a pandemic, and cleaning up involves touching many strange surfaces. Here’s a few ways to help keep yourself safe from COVID-19 while helping to clean our community:
- Wear gloves;
- Use hand sanitizer frequently, even on your gloves;
- Don’t touch your face until you’ve taken your gloves off, or sterilized them;
- Remove your gloves and sanitize your hands before getting in your vehicle, or touching another surface;
- Use a garbage picker if you have one (you know, those sticks with the pointy ends);
- Disperse your group at least 2 meters apart;
- Don’t crowd people at the dumpsters, or when picking up your gloves and garbage bags.
Thompson has already started Cleaning up!
Workers from Recreation and Public Works have been going around town picking up litter downtown and in other big problem areas in our community.
Community members have also been out cleaning up our community, like Crystal Fenner-Redhead has been out with her family picking up garbage in the Eastwood area and throughout the downtown area, using garbage bags and gloves supplied by the Thompson Recycling Center! They’ve already collected over 100 bags, and they’re still out and about: Thanks Crystal!
The Northerner 
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