It was a great day!” said Gulfport Neighbors President Margarette Tober of the second anniversary Junk in the Trunk (JITT) event Saturday, October 24. “We were blessed with perfect Florida fall weather and we actually had an increase in the number of people participating.”
The event, which allows Gulfport residents to “swap, trash or give away old furniture, appliances, tires and other bulk items for free,” also included a food collection for the Senior Center, appearances by the Gulfport Police and Fire Departments as well as representatives from the Gulfport Community Garden. The first 25 residents to donate a full bag of food items for the pantry received a ready-to-plant crepe myrtle tree courtesy of the city.
JITT is sponsored by the city of Gulfport and the Gulfport Neighbors. The event, which collected 6.1 tons of junk and 2.5 palettes of electronics, according to Tober, also saw an increase in the amount of goods being swapped/recycled. Councilwoman Yolanda Roman posted a picture to the Gulfport Neighbors Facebook page on Sunday showing the “before and after” of her ruby red paint job on the wicker trunk she picked up at JITT, calling it “a top quality piece of furniture.”
Joe McMillan of Gulfport said as he unloaded bed frames Saturday, “This is a good cause, and helps out everyone.”
The Gulfport Neighbors extended deep thanks to city officials as well as Siri’s Gourmet Burgers and pizza for providing lunch for the all-day workers and volunteers. Tobey also thanked Whistling Tom Bryant, “whistler/singer extraordinaire, for sharing his talents for our second anniversary celebration.”
The event was the seventh JITT in two years.
