Known for its quaint shops, pleasant scenery, and plethora of eateries, Lititz is a town that attracts many visitors. To get Lititz ready for summer each year, Shirley Flickinger, board member with Venture Lititz, a nonprofit dedicated to the success of the Lititz business community, and her co-chair, Mark Hough, organize the Downtown Lititz Spring Cleanup.

This year's cleanup, hosted by Downtown Lititz, will be held on Saturday, April 24, beginning at 8 a.m. "We meet in front of the borough office (7 S. Broad St., Lititz)," said Flickinger. "PennDOT gives us bags, gloves, and vests (to wear)."

The volunteer effort cleans Broad Street from Orange Street to Lincoln Avenue. "We clean up the gutters, and we weed and mulch around the trees," said Flickinger, who added that the same actions are taken on Main Street, starting at the Lititz Square and going east to Church Square at the Moravian church.

Flickinger believes the cleanup has been held for as many as seven years, but she has only been involved for the last five years. She noted that the community event attracts 35 to 50 people yearly and that Johnson & Johnson, which has an office in Lititz, often sends several employees to help out. In recent years, members of the Warwick High School girls' softball team have joined in the effort, and this year, members of the boys' baseball team are expected to participate. Stauffers of Kissel Hill donates eight scoops of mulch to be spread around the trees.

Flickinger reported that with 50 volunteers, the cleanup is usually completed in about two hours. "We start early to be close to being finished before the stores open at 10 a.m.," she said, noting how much she enjoys participating. "It's a fun thing," Flickinger remarked.

More information may be found by searching for "Downtown Lititz" on Facebook and clicking on "Events."