When Jim and Anita Shoemaker wanted some trees removed from their yard, they didn’t expect the mess they’d be left with, but also didn’t expect the ways the community would step in to help.
The Shoemakers recently hired someone to get rid of three of their trees. The person they hired cut the trees down and started to clear away some of the debris left behind, saying he’d come back for the rest. But then he didn’t.
“He never came back and cleaned up the mess,” Anita explained.
This left the Shoemakers with piles of debris around their home, including branches and tree stumps. Anita estimated a large piece left behind from the first tree was around 48 inches in diameter.
With this mess all over their yard, the Shoemakers also had no way of cleaning it up.
“We couldn’t have done it,” Jim said, adding jokingly if they’d tried to do it on their own he would “probably have been 80 or in the ground” by the time they finished.
Anita explained she’s 74 and still recovering from a back surgery, while Jim is 75 as of Wednesday and on oxygen.
While they couldn’t handle the problem alone, the Shoemakers didn’t have to. As soon as friends and neighbors saw what was happening, they were ready to help out. According to Anita, one neighbor became aware of the situation and brought it to the attention of a deputy from the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office. The deputy stopped by and brought along two men to help.
“They cleaned up the yard in less than one day,” Anita said.
The men the deputy brought to help were a work crew from the Sweetwater County Detention Center’s Inmate Community Service Program, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office.
The program employs screened volunteers who carry out their tasks under the supervision of detention officers.
“While in the past the program has traditionally been used for snow removal and trash cleanup, we’ve expanded it in the last couple of years to include a wider variety of community service projects for our friends and neighbors who could really use the help with whatever the task,” the press release stated.
Jim was so thankful for the help of the work crew members in clearing the yard, he said they’re welcome to sit at his table any time they want to.
Anita and Jim reiterated their gratitude for everyone who helped multiple times.
“There’s no way that we could have done it without the help that we had from family and friends and neighbors and the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Department,” Anita said.
While grateful, the Shoemakers aren’t necessarily surprised by the kindness they received.
“Green River has always been a welcoming community,” Anita said. “Anybody sees somebody else off to the side, they usually pull over and see if they can help. And if they can’t help, then they find somebody that can help. That’s always the way. Even when I was a kid, I grew up in Green River, and that’s the way it was. You always helped your neighbor.”
Jim and Anita have traditionally been the kind of community members offering help to others, but in this circumstance they were thankful to be the ones receiving it.
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