Volunteers took part in a one-day cleanup event Saturday morning in Valencia to beautify their community, pick up community service hours and even have some fun.
The city of Santa Clarita hosted its fourth annual Community Beautification Day in Valencia, and according to Georgia Rios, a communications specialist for the city of Santa Clarita, past projects have taken place in Newhall, Canyon Country and Saugus, which usually attract volunteers from those specific communities.
“There’s a sense of pride to it, especially if you’re coming from the neighborhood,” Rios said. “But we have such a dedicated group of volunteers who constantly look for different ways to volunteer. Some people come back every year just because they like the event so much, which is cool to see.”
Community Beautification Day annually brings together volunteers, city staff and organizations to revitalize public spaces and support property maintenance. This year’s project included spreading mulch in areas surrounding Valencia Glen Park and painting the inner walls of the paseo bridge that passes over Orchard Village Road.
In addition to the volunteer activities, the city also offered residents free bulky item disposal, and they gave out mulch and compost near Valencia Meadows Park.
Rios said most volunteers who participate in the beautification events usually come through the city’s volunteer website. Many of those participating on Saturday said they learned about this year’s event that way.
Valencia resident Elham Ali said she and her husband found out about it through social media. They moved to Valencia about seven years ago and were taking great pride in freshening up the planter areas alongside the paseos at Valencia Glen Park. At the time, they were raking leaves out of the planter beds to get the area ready for the mulch they planned to spread next.
“We just decided we wanted to help out the neighborhood, make sure that it’s not only beautiful, but also environmentally friendly,” Ali said. “We want to make sure our tree canopy here is intact, but also so all of our neighbors have access to healthy green spaces and trees. Parks are really good unifiers for a lot of our communities.”
It was the couple’s first time taking part in Community Beautification Day, and they said the experience made them feel connected to the city — like they were part of something bigger.
Former Rancho Pico Junior High School student Gurudev Nayak, who’s going into high school in the fall, came out to volunteer with his dad Saturday morning. He said he was getting some community service hours out of the way. His dad said he was there for fun.
The two of them were part of the crew painting the paseo bridge over Orchard Village Road.
Brandon Mejia, a graffiti specialist for the city of Santa Clarita, was part of that group. He said that so far in 2025, the city had removed approximately 8,400 instances of graffiti. In comparison, they removed around 16,000 pieces of graffiti in all of last year.
He explained that when graffiti removal specialists come in, they typically just spray over the graffiti with paint — they “box it out,” he said. However, the color sometimes doesn’t match the original surface perfectly, leaving behind somewhat noticeable blocks of mismatched paint. For example, the walls of the bridge had several patches where graffiti had been covered up this way.
In contrast, volunteers were repainting the entire wall surface to cover up the patchy areas and give it a clean, consistent look.
“In terms of graffiti,” Mejia said, “we have a zero-tolerance policy. Our idea behind it is to remove everything as quickly as possible to deter any more from happening. It’s pretty apparent that when you come into Santa Clarita, there’s much less graffiti than anywhere else that you go. We like keeping it that way.”
Community Beautification Day took place from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday. The city provided all the tools and materials to do the work, and bottles of water for all.
With residents young and old pitching in side by side, the event reflected a shared commitment to keeping Santa Clarita clean, welcoming and vibrant. As volunteers worked, it was clear that small acts of service had made a lasting impact on the community.
“I think it’s important for the community to see that the city wants to partner with residents to beautify their own neighborhoods,” Rios said. “People want to give back to their community. This is also an easy way to come out on a Saturday morning — before it gets too hot — and really connect with other residents. It’s something to do with your hands, and it’s nice to just be outside for a little bit and make a positive impact.”
For more information about city events and programs like the Community Beautification Day, go to GreenSantaClarita.com. For more information about volunteer efforts throughout the city, go to SantaClaritaVolunteers.com.
