Spring cleaning will become a community-wide event this weekend as the Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce and other participating organizations gear up for their annual Cleanup Campaign in preparation for the city of Orangeburg's Rose Festival.

The 32nd annual South Carolina Festival of Roses will be held April 25-27. Civic, social and professional organizations will get an early start in making the county and surrounding areas beautifully inviting during the cleanup which will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 12.

"We have about 17 civic organizations and groups throughout the county who are going to come together on Saturday. We have a lot of participating organizations as well as new ones," said OCCC information specialist LaTrice Jamision, who is also coordinator of this year's cleanup effort.

This weekend's event comes at the same time the state will hold its 2003 Great South Carolina Cleanup event. Sponsored by Palmetto Pride and Keep South Carolina Beautiful, the event is also scheduled for Saturday throughout all communities in the state.

As part of the Great American Cleanup, the nation's largest cleanup event, the state is vying for top honors in the national competition in the fight against litter.

The Junior Service League and the Lions Club will be among the cleanup crews involved in this weekend's local event. Groups will meet at the OCCC office at 1570 John C. Calhoun Drive, near the entrance to the Edisto Memorial Gardens.

Litter bags will be given to each group before participants go to pre-assigned areas. Each group will be responsible for clearing the entire area and returning the litter to the OCCC, where it will be deposited in a dumpster. Refreshments will served at the chamber office following the cleanup.

While bags can be picked up at the chamber office as early as Friday, Jamison said the entire Orangeburg County community is encouraged to clean up in and around their own areas in an effort to keep the county litter-free.

Event sponsors include Piggly Wiggly, Wal-Mart, the Orangeburg Department of Public Utilities, S.C. Department of Transportation and the city of Orangeburg.

Bob Fledderman, president of the Friends of the Edisto environmental group and chairman of its upcoming Stewardship Day cleanup event on Saturday, May 17, said this weekend's statewide event is a good way to get an early start on cleaning up the county's roads and waterways.

"Any time you can pick up trash, that's a good thing," Fledderman said.

All citizens have been encouraged to get involved in cleaning up their communities on April 12 during the three-month statewide campaign which began in March.

Orangeburg County Keep America Beautiful executive director Tina Goddard said the organization does not have a specific cleanup scheduled because there are "so many that are already doing a cleanup for the Chamber" in preparation for the Rose Festival.

However, all individuals interested in participating are encouraged to call the other Times and Democrat Region KAB coordinators for:

-- Calhoun County: Sarah Robinson

-- Bamberg County: Sarah Robinson (803-758-6034)

-- Dorchester County: Carolyn Tomlinson (843-563-0135)

-- Barnwell: Sarah Robinson (803-758-6034)

-- Lexington: Mary Pat Baldauf (803-733-2526).

For more information about volunteer opportunities, or to find out about the numerous statewide activities and events planned for the Great South Carolina Cleanup, contact PalmettoPride at 877-PAL-PRDE. Individuals can also visit the PalmettoPride Web site at www.palmettopride.org Further information can be obtained on the KAB Web site at www.kab.org

T&D Staff Writer Dionne Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5534.

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