Property off of Leaphart Road in West Columbia, near I-26, had become a blight.

Called “the valley” at Orchard Drive and Leaphart Road, the land was scattered with debris from squatters living in the woods.

But a team of local residents took it upon themselves to clean up the mess. Elicia Dawkins Jones, Cathy Farabaugh, West Columbia Mayor Tem Miles, Councilman Mike Green and Connie Martin Vaughn got together on July 9, for a clean up day.

It took four hours but the transformation is unbelievable. The photos from Vaughn show the difference from trashy to cleaned up.
There were kids toys, a bicycle and trash of every kind on the site. There was also a tent that Vaughn said was full of spoiled food, used baby diapers and human waste. But it’s gone now and reclaimed by nature.