The West Point Lake Coalition is getting ready for its second major event of the week with a visit at the group’s annual meeting Tuesday from Brig. Gen. Todd Semonite, commander of the Atlantic division.

“This is a chance to ask questions of one of the major decision-makers on the lake,” said Dick Timmerberg, coalition director.

Semonite speaks at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Best Western Lafayette Garden Inn on Lafayette Parkway in LaGrange.

Semonite’s visit will mark the second lake meeting where the commander of the Army Corps of Engineers’ South Atlantic division paid a visit. Brig. Gen. Joseph Schroedel came last year. The corps’ Atlantic division oversees the Mobile, Ala., district, which operates West Point Dam and manages the lake.

Also at the meeting, local lake leaders will look back on 2009, including a look at the September flood, and name the park ranger and fisherman of the year.

It also will be a time to celebrate the annual lake cleanup, held Saturday at Earl Cook Park. A little more than 400 volunteers from a number of schools and organizations participated. Park Ranger Rocky Millenbine said between the turnout for the cleanup and other organizations committing to cleaning up later in November, more than 500 volunteers will have come to the lake by the end of the month.

“We had approximately 200 volunteers who met at Holiday Campground; nearly 100 at Earl Cook Park; 25 at Alabama locations; over 52 scouts, some of whom canoed to a location; and a school group of 30 who met earlier this week,” Millenbine said. “Plus we will have a prison crew out later this month, the LaGrange College volleyball team who wants to volunteer and the LaGrange College Service Day on Nov. 21.”

Timmerberg praised the groups who have volunteered with the cleanup for a number of years and new groups. LaGrange College’s baseball and football teams volunteered along with several scouting groups.

“We are thrilled with the turnout,” he said. Organizers were wanting a large turnout to clean up a greater than normal amount of trash left behind by September floods.

For the first time in the history of the annual cleanup, volunteers were able to recycle some of the trash. Millenbine said a 20-foot dumpster for plastic was filled to overflowing.

“Today there were over 500 bags of recyclable plastic, 200 bags of glass and 35 bags of aluminum collected,” Millenbine said. “There were also 750 bags of trash, 65 tires and two refrigerators. This was truly an excellent example of the community coming together to restore one of its valued natural treasures.”

Jennifer Shrader may be reached at jshrader@ lagrangenews.com or at (706) 884-7311, Ext. 236.