Hate That Dirty Water

Today I read an article on CNN about a man, Chad Pregracke, who has dedicated his life to cleaning out the dirty water of the Mississippi River. Pregracke started out his work life as a commercial shell diver that never would have thought someday he would spend his life being a so called "River Garbageman". Yet, as Pregracke saw that every day there was more and more trash polluting the Mississippi River he knew he had to do something about it. This is when he formed his nonprofit organization 'Living Lands and Waters'. This organization started out with just Pregracke, his boat and a dream of making a difference. Now, some fifteen years later, Pregracke has made that difference.

Pregracke and the eleven other full time members of his organization live on a barge and throughout the year put together about seventy or so cleanups along the banks of the Mississippi River. The members of 'Living Lands and Waters' rely on help from members of the communities that they are visiting for the man power to thoroughly clean areas of the water. In just one fourteen day event, Pregracke and the volunteers had managed to collect an astonishing 120,000 pounds of garbage to remove from the water. Pregracke had the dream of cleaning up the water and making a difference, and to this day he is accomplishing this dream.

Often when you hear stories like these people are trying to preach about their beliefs and are trying to publicize their efforts for their organization. For Pragracke this is not the case. Pregracke says, "If I had one thing to say, it wouldn't even be about the rivers necessarily. It would be about finding (a) cause that is dear to you and taking action." This is exactly what Pregracke did and he has made a huge difference in the communities and wildlife surrounding the Mississippi River and the many  other rivers that he has expanded to. Why do you think that someone following a cause they believe in is so rare? Or do you believe that it is not a rare occurrence what so ever? Please comment and share your thoughts.