"It's bad, it's our community, it's our hometown. We don't want to see it destroyed," said 16-year-old Parlier resident Jennifer Arceta.
All of the volunteers spent Saturday morning covering up the tagging and old paint job. "Because it is sort of a center point of the main thoroughfare here in Parlier, we thought it was a great idea to conduct a special operation with our graffiti removal program, help out the business owner remove the graffiti and improve the appearance of this general area," said Parlier Chief of Police Davide Cerda.
The project is put on through 'CAPE,' Community Assisted Police Enforcement. These community activists belong to organizations like the Boys and Girls Club, the Lions Club and several junior high and high school programs.
"It's such a huge program, it's really growing progressively," Chief Cerda said. "This is our third operation and we're seeing more and more kids coming out. It's just instilling that sense of giving back to your community and the pride that you're taking. It's really having a big impact."
All of the paint for this project, just like the labor, was donated. CAPE will continue to find so-called eyesores to cover up in Parlier.
They're hoping to show vandals and other criminals they're not welcome in the small town. "It feels really good, because you're part of that area that's helping now, that's not making it worse than it is now," Arceta said.
