Ezra loved trains more than anything.

He loved the loud CHOO-CHOO! sounds.
 He loved the shiny tracks.
 He loved waving at the conductors as the trains rolled by.

Every Saturday, Ezra visited the train station with his mom. But one morning, Ezra noticed something yucky.

The station was messy.

Trash was on the ground. Sticky cups were under the benches. Paper wrappers blew across the tracks.

Ezra frowned.

“The station looks dirty,” he said.

His mom nodded. “Trash can hurt the Earth and animals if people don’t clean it up.”

Ezra looked around carefully.

Then he got a BIG idea.

“I’m going to start a clean-up club!” he announced.

It said:

EZRA’S CLEAN TRAIN CLUB
HELP KEEP OUR EARTH CLEAN!

Ezra hung the sign near the station door.

Soon his friends came to join.

Mia brought gloves.
 Ben carried a tiny broom.
 The twins, Max and Molly, brought trash bags.

Ezra smiled proudly.

“Welcome to the Clean Train Club!” he cheered

Mr. Luis, the station manager, came outside and laughed happily.

“What’s going on here?” he asked.

“We’re cleaning the station to help the Earth!” Ezra said.

Mr. Luis handed the kids little safety vests.

“You are wonderful helpers,” he said.

The club got to work right away.

Sweep, sweep, sweep!

Pick, pick, pick!

Wipe, wipe, wipe!

Ben swept the floor.
 Mia picked up paper.
 Max and Molly wiped the benches clean.

Ezra used a sponge to clean the train windows.

“They sparkle now!” he said happily.

Then Molly found a blue bin.

“What’s this for?” she asked.

“That’s recycling,” Mr. Luis explained. “Bottles and cans go there so they can be made into new things.”

“Cool!” said Max.

Ezra quickly made another sign.

It said:

RECYCLE HERE!

Soon passengers started using the recycling bins too.

One lady smiled at the children.

“Thank you for helping our station,” she said.

Ezra beamed with pride.

Then the wind blew more wrappers near the tracks.

“Oh no!” Mia cried.

The Clean Train Club hurried over carefully and picked up every piece of trash.

When they finished, little birds hopped through the clean grass again.

“Look!” Ben shouted. “The birds came back!”

Ezra smiled.

“They like clean places too.”

The next weekend, the club planted flowers near the station.

Yellow flowers.
 Purple flowers.
 Red flowers.

Now the station looked bright and cheerful.

People stopped to admire it every day.

One afternoon, the mayor came to visit.

“The station looks beautiful!” she said.

Mr. Luis pointed to the children.

“Thank Ezra and the Clean Train Club.”

The mayor gave each child a shiny green badge shaped like a train.

It said:

EARTH HELPER

The kids cheered.

As the sun began to set, Ezra sat on the station bench with his friends.

A shiny train rolled by with a happy:

“CHOO-CHOO!”

The flowers danced in the breeze.

The station sparkled.

And Ezra learned something important that day:

When people work together, they can make the world cleaner, brighter, and better for everyone.