Preston woman who founded Adopt-A-Highway group 20 years ago remembered for keeping community clean

PRESTON — Debra Gilmore mislaid an extended conflict pinch crab connected July 1, but moreover successful her last months, she didn’t fto nan illness support her from accomplishing a extremity she’d had pinch her “Friends of Riverdale” group since co-founding it successful July 2004.

During nan April gathering of nan Idaho Transportation Board, she was on-hand arsenic nan group was named District 5 Adopt-A-Highway Group of nan Year. District 5 covers counties successful southeast Idaho including Franklin, Bannock, Bingham, Caribou, Power, Bear Lake and Oneida.

Over nan past 20 years, nan group has picked up astir 42,000 pounds of litter from their two-mile agelong of State Highway 34 adjacent nan landfill. Routes adjacent landfills are challenging because parts of uncovered loads headed to nan landfill rustle retired of trailers and pickup beds, leaving overmuch much than nan mean magnitude of roadside trash.

Gilmore paid peculiar attraction to surgery solid that could beryllium harmful to wildlife, and items that could commencement a roadside fire. She moreover turned successful respective driver’s licenses to section rule enforcement.

The Friends of Riverdale AAH group was created erstwhile Gilmore’s begetter mentioned to his section java group that his girl was taking agelong regular walks on nan road and collecting bottles and cans arsenic she walked. A friend who worked astatine ITD suggested she officially adopt nan road truthful she could entree trash bags and protections specified arsenic information vests and roadside postulation signs.

Debra, on pinch a friend, came up pinch nan sanction “Friends of Riverdale” successful reference to nan 2 founding members’ friendship. Others from nan municipality of Riverdale occasionally assisted successful keeping nan section road clean.

Debra is survived by her loving hubby (Stephen), 2 daughters (Rosalind and Corinne) and 4 grandchildren (Austin, Cameron, Jack, and Isabella).

Stephen said he plans to support nan Friends of Riverdale group active, arsenic that would person made her very happy. He said nan Adopt-A-Highway group was very important to her, and that cleaning up litter was a semipermanent passion of hers.

“Even earlier she ‘adopted’ nan highway, she’d ever return a garbage container pinch her to prime up trash connected her walks. It’s conscionable who she was,” he said.