Though the numbers were lower for Saturday’s citywide cleanup, the enthusiasm was high as around 30 residents of Ward 7 and other volunteers gathered to take out the trash.

The group, which separated into teams, swept through the ward collecting litter on the streets while city crews collected larger loads of trash.

The ages of this particular cleanup crew was especially encouraging because the younger generation become heavily involved.

One crewmember, Ulyana Clarke, said she was very excited to help make her area look nice.

“I like to help the community I live in,” she said. “Because if we all chip in we can have a really nice city.”

Another member, Gabrielle Burns, said she was also eager to volunteer.

“I just like to help people,” she said. “We have a lot of litter out there and I just want to do my part to help.”

Selma Mayor George Evans said because of the Mother’s Day weekend he did not expect to draw a large number of volunteers.

“We know our numbers aren’t as large as they have been and that is mainly because off the holiday,” he said. “We are just going to do what we can with what we have and try to get it cleaned up in that designated area.”

The younger generation, Evans said, has always shown a great interest in improving Selma. This project, he said, is no exception.

“The young people love to get involved and over the years we have seen a lot of that,” he said. “The young folks have been frequently coming out and there are a lot of youth groups that support us as well as adults and organizations. We thank them all.”

Hopefully, Evans said, the city will be able to organize another cleanup in the coming months.