When Darren Milne lost his cell phone a week ago Saturday, he didn't expect to ever see it again.
He'd set it on the bumper of his truck while fixing the brakes at his home on Blackwater Road and had forgotten about it when he took the vehicle out on the road to test his repairs.
Fortunately for Milne, a group of high school kids from College Heights secondary school just happened to pick Blackwater Road for their roadside cleanup project Sunday morning to help raise money for a sailing trip in Victoria in September.
Bruce Hiller had just moved his truck ahead of the kids to wait for the litter they'd collected when he looked into the ditch and saw Milne's black iPhone in the grass on the opposite side of the road, not far from Milne's house. Milne's wife Spring happened to be out in her front yard when the teens came by and asked if anybody had seen a cell phone and Hiller handed it over to her.
"He bought it in April and he's already replaced it," said a relieved Spring Milne. "We'll probably give it to our daughter."
The students are part of the College Heights secondary Sail and Life Skills Training Society program, which will give them a chance to sail a tall ship on a five-day September trip through the Gulf Islands.
College Heights teacher Cindy Smith said the roadside cleanup program sponsored by Yellowhead Road and Bridge gives students a chance to raise money for worthwhile causes. A week ago, 57 leadership students from three city secondary schools raised $2,000 for the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program to send kids to summer camps.
