More than 50 pounds of trash were picked up at South Padre Island's Coco Beach, thanks to the help of dozens of volunteers.  

Sierra Mendez, a senior at South Texas ISD World Scholars in Edinburg, is one of the more than 40 volunteers who spent their Saturday picking up trash left behind by beach goers.

Mendez said her goal was to pick up trash that could hurt marine life.

SPI Beach Clean Up organized the event, their last cleanup of the year.

Nelda Vega started the volunteer organization five years ago after seeing a need in her community. 

“Nobody was really doing the beach cleanups, so when we started it was just us,” Vega said.

On average, volunteers pick up 50 to 100 pounds of trash at their monthly cleanups.

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