LA HABRA : Volunteers Persist in Anti-Graffiti War

Every month or so for the past decade, a half-dozen or more members of the La Habra Noon Lions Club have met for breakfast and then set out in pairs to paint over graffiti in the city.

“We’ve probably covered in excess of 2,000 places,” estimated Kent Roberts, leader of a meeting at Cleary’s Restaurant on La Habra Boulevard recently.

The paint and other supplies were bought through donations from various community organizations. The Chamber of Commerce coordinates the supply effort, according to Roberts, who is chamber president.

Paul Bush, a magazine editor with an office in La Habra, has been involved in the anti-graffiti project for about a year.

“You feel pretty good at the end of the day,” Bush said, noting that passers-by offer encouragement to the workers. “People honk their horns and yell praise.”

City Councilman John C. Holmberg teamed up with Roberts and Les Prime to cover part of northeast La Habra.

“We’ve seen the problem jump in the last month or so, and I want to see if this solution will continue to work,” Holmberg said.

The three climbed into Roberts’ yellow Mercedes, the trunk filled with supplies, and took to the streets about 8:30 a.m. By their second stop, in the alley behind an auto supply store on Harbor Boulevard, Prime had already worked up a healthy sweat.

Prime learned of the anti-graffiti project during a recent City Council meeting. “I like to clean up La Habra,” said Prime, a 21-year resident of the city. “It’s getting to look like East L.A.”

At a home on Erna Avenue, the crew found graffiti along a wall and covering the garage door. “This is the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Roberts.

The workers were able to partially cover the markings after about 20 minutes, but the appearance of the residence remained marred by the vandalism. Dean and Sherry Rhoades, residents of a duplex in an area with graffiti problems, praise the cleanup effort.

“We’re tired of these people making a mess,” Dean Rhoades said.

“It seems like in the past six months things have gotten real bad,” added Sherry Rhoades.

Before noon, the crews had erased graffiti at 28 locations in town. “We’re the town that’s supposed to be part of the (graffiti) problem,” said Bush. “But we really are part of the solution.”