The fires may have put a dent in their numbers, but Forster graffiti-buster Ted Bickford said he and his small group of volunteers still achieved a lot on Graffiti Removal Day.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
With the majority of the 14 volunteers Ted had lined up unable to join them because of the fires burning in the area, Ted, his daughter Bronwyn, and youngsters Sophie Collins, Tiffanie Ervine, Hayden Hodges and Kyle De Gioia were forced to tackle the task of applying anti-graffiti coating to various landmarks around Forster Tuncurry alone on Sunday, October 27.
But that didn't slow them down, with the group spending five hours coating the memorials in the area as well as 17 signs at Boronia Park.
"The day from my point of view was very successful," Ted said.
"The kids worked really well."
He also praised those who couldn't make it, saying it made him proud to have them all call up and let him know they were unable to get there.
Related:
Put on each year by the NSW Government, Graffiti Removal Day aims to highlight the problem of graffiti across the State and encourages people to volunteer their time to remove and prevent graffiti.
Close to 3000 volunteers took part in 2019, removing graffiti at approximately 600 sites around NSW.
Ted believed an important part of the initiative was to raise awareness among councils who hadn't adopted a graffiti program like MidCoast Council.
"It's amazing the amount of money councils are spending and they're losing," he said.
"Our biggest problem here is we've got nothing to take off, but that's proving a point.
"We've won."
Stay ahead with local news by signing up for the Great Lakes Advocate newsletter here.
