YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea -- U.S. Army Garrison Yongsan community members participated in the annual Spring Clean-Up Exercise focusing on unit, activity, troop billet areas and Family Quarters, May 14-18.

All units at Brigade, Battalion and Company level, Family Quarters, Bachelor Enlisted Quarters and Bachelor Officers Quarters occupants and USAG Yongsan staff used good old fashioned elbow grease to not only ensure area beautification, but more importantly to prepare for the upcoming monsoon season. They cleared away debris from assigned areas and went into action based on the mission schedule.

"This is a great event," said Sgt. 1st Class Ronald Nagy, first sergeant for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, USAG Yongsan. "Units should take pride in maintaining their areas. First impressions are lasting impressions and it sets the tone of how the unit operates."

The event included a wide range of tasks in preparation for monsoon season bringing about torrential downpours, flooding and high winds. Participants were given missions to remove all the sand, debris, dead leaves from roads, and weeds from joints in cement and asphalt.

They also focused on cleaning drainage ditches; digging up accumulated mud and foliage sediments, which slow the flow of the water in rainy season.

Spring Clean-Up covered Hannam Village, Koryosan Site, Religious Retreat Center, Sungnam Golf Course, Camp Market, K-16 Air Field, Incheon Mail Terminal as well as Yongsan.

Spring clean up is more than just manual labor and it taught more important lessons according to Cpl. Baek Woon-hae at HHC, USAG Yongsan.

"It's an opportunity for Korean Augmentation to the United States Army and U.S. Soldiers to come together and feel a sense of team work and ownership of our environment. We got small breaks, laughing and joking around with each other and spent time together in an informal environment."

All units are responsible for their assigned areas throughout the year and Self-Help assists by issuing tools and equipments to units, activities and individuals.