PEOPLE in Bude may have seen an army of litter warriors taking to the streets, back lanes and quieter paths around the town, as Bude Rubbish Action Group carried out a 24-hour litter pick on Saturday, July 21.

Bude Rubbish Action Group (BRAG) were armed with bags, litter pickers, high-viz jackets and a donation tin as they made their way through the town’s roads, paths, lanes and other areas to do a 24-hour clean up, raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support along the way.

The team, led by BRAG’s Paul Crum who started the initiative as part of A Greener Bude, was joined by chief litter warrior Wayne Dixon and his trusty dog Koda, and also met with mayor of Bude Bob Willingham and Cornwall Councillor Peter La Broy, who also showed their support. BRAG members also dropped in on the Bude Animal Free Research group’s fundraiser at Co-op.

The team set off from Marhamchurch at 11am on Saturday morning, consisting of Paul, Louise Edgcumbe, Binzy Reynolds and Wayne and Koda, to be later joined by Andree Carter, her husband Steve and two guests that were staying with them. They headed down the A39 towards Stratton, and from there they cut through the back lanes into town and ended up at the Co-op, which took them until about 2pm. They then went through town to get to the Castle grounds where Andree’s party left them. They had a quick clean around the grounds and took an hour out to sit in the shade to get Koda out of the sun. Paul’s partner Laila had arranged for Paul to have his head shaved at the Castle grounds as the Free Family Fun Day event was taking place there at the time.

Colin Danks at Clip Joints carried out the brave deed, which Paul decided to do in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support as Laila has been receiving treatment for metastatic thyroid cancer and the cancer charity have been helping the family greatly through this difficult time.

After the shave, at around 5pm, Laila took Wayne and Koda home with her and left the group to clean around the area. Laila went back to the group at 7pm where they focused around the Triangle and Summerleaze car park. After Laila, Wayne and Koda and Louise left for the evening, after an incredible ten hours’ litter picking, the rest of the team focused on the town all night — they even went to get bottles out of the River Neet. They were given hot refreshments from the Premier Inn hotel and also during the afternoon on Saturday they were given cold drinks from a local business. The team received a lot of support and were even given chocolate and coffee.

In the morning, Laila dropped Wayne and Koda back to the team and Louise also rejoined. They slowly made their way to Rosie’s Kitchen at Crooklets beach to finish their venture, and the team raised a total, that is still growing, of £780 when their target was £400.

Laila said: “I’m proud of them all but especially Paul and Binzy who did the full 24 hours like superheroes. I’m so very proud of everyone in Bude for all the support they gave.”