GERALD CASSIDY stands in front of his truck full of noxious weeds that are being transported to the landfill for disposal. He is paying children in Wishram 50 cents per pound to pull up puncture vine, the third year of his town cleanup program that is also intended to reward hard work.
GERALD CASSIDY stands in front of his truck full of noxious weeds that are being transported to the landfill for disposal. He is paying children in Wishram 50 cents per pound to pull up puncture vine, the third year of his town cleanup program that is also intended to reward hard work.
Gerald Cassidy set out this summer to clear noxious weeds out of Wishram and help children in the small community earn a little cash.
He offered youth 50 cents for every pound of puncture vine, also known as “goat head,” that they pulled out from roadside shoulders, ditches, empty lots and other places that it flourished.
The weed has sharp-edged spines that are strong enough to puncture a bicycle tire (hence its name) or penetrate shoe soles. “I didn’t want to have chemicals used in my town so this was a good alternative,” said Cassidy. “It also helps teach these kids that hard work pays off.”
So far this summer, children have pulled about three-quarters of a ton of weeds and they can keep working until school starts. This is the third year that Cassidy has hired youth to pull the weeds, which he has taught them need to come out by the roots so they don’t grow back.
He has also thrown a math lesson into the equation by having the children weigh themselves and then hold onto the sack of weeds while on the scale. They have to figure out what their profit margin is by the eight differential.
“If you just use a little elbow grease, you can take care of yourself,” Cassidy tells youth.
He is retired from a career with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and believes too many people in America now wait for someone else to take care of them instead of seizing the initiative.
He wanted to show children there was a reward to laboring, not only in money but in caring for their hometown that boasts a population of several hundred people.
According to Cassidy, the poverty rate in Wishram is 66 percent and many struggling families have become dispirited. He is hopeful that working together on the weed eradication project will cause community spirit to blossom.
“This is incredible, it’s an adventure,” he said.
One day Cassidy hopes to rally citizens to build a skatepark that will provide children with a place to socialize and exercise.
“It’s just the grass roots of doing something,” he said.
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