One of the joys of living in Northeast Michigan is our access to the beautiful shoreline of Thunder Bay and Lake Huron.

Several area volunteers have done their part over the warmer months to make sure one of those beaches stays beautiful.

The recently wrapped up cleaning season generated 108 volunteer hours and removed 43,000 pounds of debris from Starlite Beach, according to a recent report on The News’ Lifestyles page.

Led by Jeff Welch and Eric Peterson, the group has removed most of the so-called “black tide” bark left over from the lumbering area that often clogged the shoreline.

The group will resume cleanup on April 1, and next year plans to sift sand to continue to remove black bark, the group reported to News Lifestyles Editor Darby Hinkley.

We’re extraordinarily grateful to Welch, Peterson and all of their fellow volunteers for keeping one of the jewels of Northeast Michigan beautiful for residents and visitors to enjoy.

Keep up the good work!