Giving back is an important part of Patch’s mission, so five times a year, the Patch local editors take some time off to volunteer in the community.

Since the Cuyahoga Valley National Park is such an important resource to Brecksville and the surrounding communities, I usually spend my volunteer time helping to clean up the trails. On the “trail sweeps” I’ve been part of, volunteers have cleaned up graffiti, moved fallen trees, cleared culverts for rainwater and just generally tidied the trail of the day.

This past Thursday, I joined a group of volunteers on the Tree Farm Trail in Peninsula. It was pretty well kept already, so we just did our part to pick up sticks and trim errant branches. It was definitely a beautiful way to spend an afternoon.

If you’d like to join a future trail sweep, check out the website for the Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The group typically runs at least one sweep a week. There are still trail sweeps on the 20th and 26th of May, and the schedule for June is also posted.