Moving to Milford, Pa., in the month of August 2020 was very exciting for my family and me. We fell in love with the area for its nature, cleanliness, and warmth. We have enjoyed seeing the animals: eagles, humming birds, foxes, hawks, chipmunks, squirrels, fish, snakes, bears, deer, turtles, and rabbits etc. Of course, we also enjoy telling our family and friends about all of the animals that we have encountered.
Milford is a great town and has welcomed us with open arms. My children have an addiction to Milford Beach and it takes a lot of bribing to make them want to go anywhere else. The Delaware Valley School District has also embraced our children which has lessened our anxieties of moving here. We are looking forward to the summer months so that we may continue exploring and basking in all that our new town has to offer.
I did notice that the citizens of Milford are very proud of their community and even observed signs such as Milford Strong. Even though I am new to Milford, I would like to introduce a new slogan, which would be Milford Clean. I was very disappointed to be bombarded by an immense amount of garbage while visiting some of the rivers, lakes, and waterfalls that Pike County so boastfully and wonderfully exhibits.
In the summer and fall, Milford’s beach was unfortunately covered by many undesirable items such as plastic and glass bottles, paper plates, masks, napkins, pieces of clothing, etc. Some of the objects also entered the river and were floating down it as if they wanted to join the boats, kayaks, and river tubes that leisurely floated along the river. The only difference is that the garbage never leaves the river at the end of the day but remains to pollute it. The pollution is not only unsightly and purely disgusting but it is also very dangerous to our environment.
While at the beach, we were also exposed to loud and indecent behavior. The profanity was explicit and made me very uncomfortable as I was also with my children. The huge amount of day tourists to the area seemed to ignore the signs that prohibit littering and the use of alcohol. We however still frequented the beach but started to visit less frequently as the garbage, drunkenness, loud music, and obscenity increased. At one point the police came to the beach to ask some picnickers to reduce the volume of their music as it was deafening.
One evening while visiting Raymondskill Falls, I noticed that people left their snack wrappers along the trail, and I even watched people dump their no long working cooler with empty cans over the cliff. I would have climbed down the cliff to pick it up and dispose of it, but my husband forbade me!
This is our town, and we need to protect it and not allow it to be destroyed by pollution. Pike County is a beautiful place and would like us all to thoroughly enjoy it. However, rules and regulations have to be put in place and followed.
Our future generations should be able to look forward to the serenity that Pike County has to offer. I hope a solution is instated soon as the lovely summer is encroaching on us all quickly. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your lovely community.
Daliah John-Trent
Milford