Volunteers clean up Angel Mounds before upcoming new era in site history

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) -- Volunteers are getting out of the house and cleaning up litter at Angel Mounds State Historic Site.

It is done is prepare for a new era in the site's history.

On an unseasonably warm day in the Tri-State, what better day to pick up trash left behind at Angel Mounds?

"I care about history. I've always cared about history. But I actually decided to do something about it," says volunteer Charlotte, a senior at Signature School.

The volunteers and one of the Angel Mounds staff members will say there is a couple purposes behind cleaning up the soda cans, cigarettes and candy wrappers across the archeological site.

For a handful of hours, they canvass the area, ensuring Angel Mounds looks nice for its museum grand reopening taking place next weekend on November 16 and 17.

"We'll have all new exhibits that will be a lot more interactive. And it will tell the story more of the descendants of Native American people and honor them a lot more than the old exhibit did," says program developer Ben Durham.

One father and son have come to volunteer for the love of history.

"To me it's important to make sure this site gets the recognition not only for its history, but also the activities that is allows the community to do -- mountain biking, hiking, disc golf, among other things," says volunteer Kyler McReynolds.

Three seniors from Signature School say they've come not only to care for their environment, but also to honor the people who lived here before the colonization period.

In a short amount of time, they even found an old skateboard lying on the site.

They believe a little commitment can go a long way.

"If you just come out and you visit and bring a bag with you and you pick up trash, and you only spend an hour here, that's an hour or more of picking up trash than we had before. Anything counts. All the little stuff adds up," says Signature School senior Erika.

That commitment is going toward helping what's in store next weekend.

"We'll also have some performers outside. We'll have Native American people doing dances and music, and we'll also have some native artists in our event space selling their art," Durham says.

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