Group shows age isn’t a factor in community service

By Taylor Hale

While some take their later years to rest, a group of women from Plover is spending their golden years picking up trash and making their neighborhood a nicer place.

Residents of Mapleridge of Plover – also known as Tanglewood Assisted Living – gather each week to walk around their town and pick up garbage. On each trip, around five to seven people hit the streets to clean, sometimes filling multiple bags with refuse.

“We were looking for ways to take walks, and we noticed when we were out taking walks there’s a lot of trash and stuff around,” said Activity Director Karl Kiefer. “We all kind of said, if we’re walking around we should start picking stuff up and going to the places. We wanted things to look nice while we were taking our walks.”

While the group is mostly focused on maintaining the area near Maple Drive in Plover, they pack in the van to clean parks throughout the village and area, sometimes even going as far as Waupaca.

“We’re together and it makes it a lot more fun, and we get out in the fresh air,” said Brigette “DiDi” Mortenson, a group member since its inception.

Kiefer said the outings are a way to give back to the community and give the ladies some time outdoors.

“They love it, and we try to go to scenic places while we do it,” Kiefer explained.

The residents and staff of Mapleridge are showing that age isn’t a factor when it comes to serving your community. All members of the group are from Mapleridge, but Kiefer noted that he is open to expanding the group to the public in the future.

For more information, call 715-342-0800.