Teens Work to Clean Up L.A.

Teenagers in bright green T-shirts and khakis swarmed over a steep abandoned lot in Highland Park on Saturday, one of 11 neighborhood sites where they cleared brush and bagged trash. For more than 200 members of the “Clean & Green” program of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps, it was all in a day’s work.

For their parents -- invited to the group’s sixth annual “Bring Your Parent to Work Day” -- joining in the labor was a chance to see what their kids had been doing during the nonprofit program’s summer session.

“A lot of parents just think the kids are going away to summer camp, but they’re actually doing great work,” said Irene Lopez, program director for Clean & Green, which employs underprivileged Los Angeles youth in urban cleanup and beautification projects. “They’re learning all about blight,” about what dumping garbage does to their communities, she added.

Nichelle Barrera, 13, held a garbage bag open for her mother, Sandra Cuellar, 35, who shoveled trash into it. “It’s been fun, but it’s hard sometimes,” Nichelle said, sweat trickling from her temples. “I don’t litter any more.”

Getting to the job at 7:30 a.m. has been a lesson in responsibility for Nichelle, Cuellar said. “Now she knows the hard work I have to put up with every day,” Cuellar said. “It was amazing when she cashed her first check.”

Nichelle, like the nearly 2,000 Los Angeles students ages 13 to 17 who work for Clean & Green each year, makes $6.75 an hour. The $4-million program -- funded primarily through the city with some federal backing -- has employed area youth since 1988.

Before they are hired, low-income students must write an essay about why they want to work for Clean & Green. Participants in the popular program are selected for rotating sessions on a first-come, first-served basis, Lopez said.

During the summer, students are employed for six weeks, nearly full time. During the school year, they work weekends. For most of the participants, Clean & Green is their first job.

“Many of us learn more at these work sites than in our traditional classrooms,” said Clean & Green alumna Regina Chagolla, 21, who was leading a team of teen workers removing weeds along Cypress Avenue in Cypress Park. “You learn work ethics and being responsible and accountable for your own actions.”

Chagolla credits her five years of working summers and weekends in the program with helping her develop leadership skills and increased self-esteem. Clean & Green was instrumental in helping her receive a full merit scholarship to the University of Wisconsin at Madison, she said.

After the morning’s work, the Clean & Greeners, as they are called, and their parents were treated to lunch while Aztec dancers performed in Sycamore Grove Park.

The crowd of more than 300, some still covered in dust, settled into seats in a tented pavilion. They were praised by Lopez and City Councilman Ed Reyes, whose district benefited from the cleanup efforts.

Alma Caballero, 31, sat behind her son Paul, 14. “I’m very proud,” she said, smiling at her son, who used his first paycheck to buy her a digital camera. “She deserves it,” Paul said.