Texas Coastal Cleanup

The Texas Coastal Bend Railroad (TCBR) typically hauls things like grain, cement, and steel, but on February 24, the team decided to move trash.

For the second year in a row, the TCBR’s Team Safety & Improvement Committee (TSIC) organized the team’s participation in the Billy Sandifer Big Shell Beach Cleanup along the Padre Island National Seashore. This year, 2,000 volunteers joined the TCBR team to clean nearly 30 miles of beach and removed nearly 28 tons of trash, or the equivalent of two large dump trucks.

“We were looking for ways to bring the team together after startup,” said Mike Hanna, conductor/engineer and TSIC chair. “We wanted to show Watco’s culture to new team members, the folks who stayed on from the previous operator, and our customers in the port. Volunteering together was a good way to accomplish that.”

The TCBR took over rail operations from another short line company in late-2022, providing rail service at the Port of Corpus Christi. The team wanted to bring people together and engage with the community. It’s been a success. In 2023, four team members came out for the cleanup. This year 13 team members participated, and several brought their families as well.

“It’s been a great way to bring people closer together and build camaraderie,” Hanna said. “And we’re giving back to the community in the process. We plan to do it again next year and we hope to grow it even more by inviting our customers to join.”

Pictured above: Sam Garcia, Fabian Garcia, Mike Hanna, Darl Farris, Anthony Schuler, Jesse Luna, Jeremy Evans, Damien Evans, Isaac Martinez, Richard Flowers, and Anthony Luna.