Glenview Students Clean Up Wilmette Beach

WILMETTE, IL — More than 60 students from Springman Middle School spent their Saturday helping to clean up a Wilmette beach as part of International Coastal Cleanup Day. The Beach Sweep at Gillson Park was one of many efforts around the globe that day aimed at protecting oceans and lakes, as students spread out along the beach and grassy areas of the park to collect and inventory all the trash they discovered.

As much as 10-14 pounds of trash was picked up by some of students, who were joined by Principal Jason Kaiz, teachers Danielle Danno, Faye Berlage, Manos Ginis, Tracey Serve and the event's organizer, Julianne Tripple, according to a District 34 spokesperson.

"This event highlights the importance of protecting our ecosystems and allows the students to make a positive impact close to home," Danno said. "They can see the immediate results of their efforts and are excited to 'weigh in' at the end to see how much they collected." (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Glenview, Wilmette — or your Illinois community. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

Bits of plastic, cigarette butts and bottle caps were the most common things found on the beach last weekend, Springman students told Daily North Shore. They said the most unusual finds were a headless doll, some broccoli and 100 pistachio shells.

The group trash pickup motivated students to find as much garbage as possible, one sixth-grader said.

"It is like a competition because we weigh the bags in the end,” Katie Allen told the website.

Over the past nine years, Springman English teacher Tripple has registered the Glenview school as a volunteer team on the Alliance for Great Lakes website, bringing the school together with the Wilmette Rotary Club. The Alliance for the Great Lakes said last year's event yielded more than 40,000 pounds of trash along the Great Lakes, most of which was trash discarded by people.

After the cleanup, the students shared breakfast together on the beach followed up some swimming and sand volleyball.

_{Top photo: Springman Middle School students participate in a beach cleanup at Gillson Park in Wilmette | Courtesy District 34}