Forum Photo by Michael V. Cusenza
Melissa Orlando (l. to r.), Gina Barillaro, and Lauren Jaeger at the site on Sunday.
By Michael V. Cusenza

Forum Photo by Michael V. Cusenza
The volunteers are all smiles on Sunday in front of the Sept. 11th Memorial Mural.
Area residents joined forces on Sunday to help beautify several spots across Howard Beach, including the underpass on 84th Street between 157th Avenue and Shore Parkway that The Forum reported on in its most recent edition.
Eddie Earl’s “Howard Beach 11414” and the “Team up to Clean Up” crew filled bag after bag with food scraps left for pigeons and illegally dumped garbage. The underpass’s sidewalk and roadway gleamed after it was power-washed.

Forum Photo by Michael V. Cusenza
“Howard Beach 11414” volunteer Connie D’Andrea contributes to the clean-up effort on Sunday.
“Eddie doesn’t just talk about making things nice—he does the work,” Howard Beach resident Connie D’Andrea noted of Earl.
Asked why she was out on a dazzling Sunday morning picking up garbage, D’Andrea answered, “Because I want to keep Howard Beach clean and beautiful, and make sure it returns to the clean and beautiful place it once was.”