2nd Annual Watauga Lake Cleanup!


Registration At Fish Springs Begins Saturday At 8:30am
June 04, 2011


OUR COMMUNITY GIVES BACK / 2nd ANNUAL WATAUGA LAKE CLEANUP

BUTLER, TN — Our Community Gives Back, an organization of people who live on and/or use Watauga Lake, has organized the 2nd Annual Watauga Lake Cleanup on Saturday, June 11. Registration begins at 9:00AM at Sugar Grove Baptist Church on Sugar Grove Road, Butler TN & Fish Springs Marina, 191 Fish Springs Road; Hampton, TN. Volunteers will be given gloves and trash bags before scanning the waterways and the shoreline across the full expanse of the lake in both Johnson & Carter Counties. Once registrants return to the drop off points with trash, they will be given wristbands for admittance to an after clean-up celebration.

According to Mary Salter, Our Community Gives Back president, “The lake not only serves area residents and the local community; it serves as a tourist destination for folks from all over the southeast. It is our goal to keep the lake pristine and always make a great first impression for our out of town guests. Last year we had over 200 registered volunteers take part in the cleanup. This year we hope to increase that number by at least 50%.”

Watauga Lake is an economic lifeline for both Carter and Johnson Counties according to Thomas White, Fish Springs Marina owner and a returning sponsor of this year’s event.

“According to our survey data, a tremendous amount of visitors come from North Carolina, but the major influx of tourism comes from south Florida. Watauga Lake is truly a regional tourist destination. We live here, we work here and we entertain the multitudes of visitors who vacation here. I’m excited to again see so much community support for the lake cleanup. It’s all volunteer, and it benefits everyone in the region”, White said.

Trash drop off dumpsters will be located at Fish Springs Marina & Sugar Grove Baptist Church. A floating trash barge will be located in the middle of the lake. Trash can be dropped off at these locations from 9:00AM until 3:00PM.

There will be a celebration party following the clean up at Fish Springs Marina beginning at 3 PM. The Celebration Picnic is accessible from both land and water. Volunteers must have an admission wristband for the Cleanup Celebration Picnic upon delivery of trash at the drop-off locations. It is suggested that volunteers bring folding chairs to the celebration party.

There will be food, music by “Lightnin’ Charlie" and prizes all donated by local and regional businesses, as well as civic-minded citizens. Door prize drawings will be held at the Celebration Picnic and you must be present to win. No one will be admitted to the Celebration Picnic without a wristband. A Door Prize Raffle Ticket will be given for each bag of trash collected.

Watauga Lake is about five miles east of Elizabethton, Tennessee. It is a TVA electric generating facility capable of producing 57,600 kilowatts. The reservoir extends 16.7 miles above the dam and provides 152,829 acre-feet of storage capacity. Construction of Watauga started on February 16, 1942, but the War Production Board ordered work stopped in October because it was considered nonessential to the war effort. Construction on Watauga resumed July 22, 1946, and the dam was completed on December 1, 1948. Water levels on Watauga vary only about nine feet in normal years to provide for seasonal flood storage and for the augmentation of flows of water during other seasons. It forms a long, slender body of water extending in an easterly direction from the dam, and it has a shoreline of approximately 109 miles.

For information, to volunteer or donate contact: Mary Salter 423-768-0363.

Sponsor’s & Contributors:

Allied Waste

Applebee’s

Auto Zone of Mt.City

Beef O’Brady’s Restaurant

Big John’s Closeout

Bill Cockett

Billy Joe Burrows Trucking Co.

Boone Rent-ALL

Captain’s Table Restaurant

Cornett Furniture

Cozy Corner Florist

Doe Valley Store

Dorre’s Designs

Dr. David Mills

Dry Hill General Store

East Tennessee Power Sports

Elizabethton Auto Zone

Elizabethton Golf Course

Elizabethton Parks & Recreation

Express Graphics

Farmer’s State Bank

Fatz Restaurant

Fish Springs Marina

Food Country Grocery Store

Food Lion Grocery Store

Fred Hicks Cabinets

Freeman Gas & Electric

Hair Fashions & More

Heritage Propane

House of Flowers

Humphrey’s Masonry Supply

In Memory of Marina Hernandez

Jim Cherry- Carolina Made

Johnson County Bank

Johnson County Building Supply

Lake Shore Marina

Lowe’s of Elizabethton

Madena & Co. Jewelry Store

Malcolm J. Wilson Marketeer

Mallard Cove Marina

Marsh Propane

Marty Plummer

MAYMEAD

Mayor Larry Potter

McDonalds of Mt. City

Mountain City Cycles

Mountain City Excavation & Paving

Mountain City Funeral Home

Mountain Electric Cooperative/OPC

Mountain View Nursery and Landscape

NAPA Auto Parts of Mt. City

O’Reilly’s Auto Parts

Papa Murphy’s Pizza

Pioneer Landing

Pizza Inn

Poblano’s Mexican Restaurant

Red Tail

Save A Lot Groceries

Second District Vol. Fire Dept.

ShayBrey Interior Design & Florist

Shoun Lumber & Millwork

Silver Keys Bed & Breakfast

State Farm Insurance

Suba’s Restaurant

Sugar Grove Baptist Church

Tennessee Forestry Services

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency

The Cabin Store

The Final Touch

The Garden Barn & Feed

The Harbor POA

The Jeweler’s Bench

The McCann Family

The McWilliams Family

The Primitive Shop

The Tomahawk News Paper

TN. Clean Water Network

Tractor Supply Co.

Tributary Restaurant

True Value Hardware

TVA

Vicky Woods – Iron Mountain Inn

Vila Nova Vineyards

Wagner, Potter & Tuttle Families

Wal-Mart of Elizabethton

Walker Title, LLC

Waste Management

Watauga Lake Real-Estate