beach cleanup party

Morgenn Surabian pictured with her homemade recycling boxes (photo courtesy of Stephanee Surabian).

Morgenn Surabian, a 5-year-old girl from Batavia, wants her 6th birthday to make a meaningful impact by hosting a beach cleanup party at LaSalle Park in Buffalo.

From 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Aug. 3, Morgenn invites community members to join her in recycling items found on the shore of Lake Erie to help protect marine life and beautify the environment.

"She's calling it her 'Birthday Wish for the Fish' for her friends and family and other volunteers to come join her to help make her birthday wish come true," Morgenn's mother, Stephanee Surabian, said.

"We'll be hosting a public event, free to anyone who would like to come join us that day," Surabian said. "We're going to be cleaning up that beach and collecting information of the findings."

The event will offer snacks and music for volunteers to enjoy. The Surabians are working with the Buffalo Division of Parks and Recreation to donate the bottles and cans collected during the cleanup.

Morgenn said her birthday idea was inspired by the Disney animated movie "Finding Dory." She said the beach cleanup is important to her "to keep the water healthy" and "because we don't want the fish to be caught in the plastic."

Volunteers can register for "Birthday Wish for the Fish" online here.

The 77-acre LaSalle Park, located at 1 Porter Ave., is Buffalo’s largest waterfront park -- at the mouth of the Niagara River where it meets Lake Erie.