Local sorority chapter shows appreciation for sanitation workers

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – It’s one of those jobs that often gets overlooked, except when it’s not done.

An area sorority took time today to change that.

The Pi Iota Zeta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta treated the Sanitation and Environmental Services workers in Starkville to lunch Wednesday to show their appreciation for the job they do every day.

The crew was grateful for the recognition.

Organizer Angela Buress-Stewart said it’s a small thanks to people who do so much, and she urged others to do the same in their hometowns.

“They do a lot of work. They do a lot of hard work. And they really should be recognized and appreciated more,” said Buress-Stewart.

“Our day normally starts at 7:00, and you know, whatever type of conditions we face. The Sanitation Department gets up. They go out. They get it with a smile. So, just from a department standpoint, we’re thankful for that,” said Christopher Smiley, Sanitation Director of the City of Starkville.

Today’s event coincides with the beginning of Black History Month.

It was a sanitation worker strike in Memphis in April 1968 that proved to be Dr. Martin Luther King’s last demonstration and the occasion for his famed “Mountain Top” speech the night before he was assassinated.

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