Bellefonte, Pa. – On an unseasonably chilly day in May, a team of eight Restek employees left together to do something the company has been doing twice a year since 2009—highway cleanup duty.
For eight years, Restek employees have maintained a twomile section of Route 144 running from Axemann to the Bellefonte Borough line as part of the PA Adopt A Highway program. Restek employees say it is a particularly important stretch of road because Logan Branch Creek—a Class A wild trout stream—runs along it.
“Keeping the area clean of litter helps keep the stream clean and productive, and we have a good time while we are doing it. Employees get to know each other a little better, and when we are done, we have lunch together,” Jim Richards, the cleanup crew organizer and calibration coordinator at Restek, said.
Seven employees joined Richards in the May cleanup, including his youngest son, Jacob Richards, who was recently hired at Restek. The other employee-volunteers were Mike Goss, Christina Hill, Jerry Johnston, Kendra Jozefick, Jessica Resides, and Brian Yangula.
As part of the program, employees can participate during the workday each spring and fall in support of the company’s environmental efforts and community service.
And it appears to be helping—Richards said the cleanup was lighter than most year.
“I would like to thank the many volunteers, past and present, that we have here at Restek that take the time to pick up someone else’s trash twice a year,” he said. “It doesn’t come with any kind of recognition or compensation, but it has its reward in serving the community.”
