Mounds of trash and tires fill a corner of the parking lot at the Police Athletic Center. Leslie Collins

Area volunteers collect a variety of trash from the Blue Valley neighborhood Sept. 21. The trash was put on display at the Police Athletic League Center, 1801 White Ave. Leslie Collins

Northeast News
September 21, 2012

Area volunteers collected a heap of trash from the Blue Valley neighborhood Sept. 21.

Both the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) and Metropolitan Community Service Program (MCSP) partnered together to host the neighborhood cleanup.

Now in its 18th year, the MCSP serves 92 court jurisdictions metro-wide and provides more than 70 community service job sites for its partners like KCPD.

Over the last 10 years, MSCP has helped coordinate more than 1.1 million community service hours, which equates to more than $23 million in free labor.

On average, MCSP helps organize 9 neighborhood cleanups each weekend metro-wide with at least four being coordinated with KCPD officers and neighborhood organizations.

In addition to assisting with neighborhood cleanups, MCSP also connects urban core youth to the Police Athletic League. On Sept. 21, trash from the neighborhood cleanup was taken to the Police Athletic League parking lot, 1801 White Ave., for removal and to show off the hard work of volunteers.