Equipped with paint supplies strapped to the back of her bicycle, “Graffiti Peggy” is on a mission to rid Auburn of unwanted and illicit markings.

The pedal-powered woman frequently patrols her beat during the week, an exercise undaunted by the uncomfortable chill of autumn and winter outings.

It is a determined, year-round effort by one of the community’s most active volunteers.

“The inspiration?” Peggy Van Geystel was asked. “I was out walking three years ago and noticed a lot of graffiti, even down my own alley. I just thought, ‘I’m tired of this.'”

Van Geystel soon became van Gogh, removing what gang members, vandals and taggers left behind on telephone poles, walls, signs, garage doors, fences and electrical boxes.

Needing the exercise and a focused project, she decided to make a difference. Recognizing this, City graffiti abatement program officials chipped in, supplying Van Geystel with paint and graffiti removal products.

“We realize her dedication is something special. It’s something nobody else was doing,” said Kirsten Reynolds of the City’s Community Services Division who has worked closely with Van Geystel. “She’s doing something for the community, not just for herself, which is just amazing.

“She is someone special. … I wish more people can be like that.”

Mayor Pete Lewis added: “What a wonderful place we live in that has people like Peggy who care so much.”

What began close to her downtown-area home soon expanded to her neighborhood and beyond, one alley, one street at a time.

Today, Van Geystel continues to remove graffiti in her coverage zone, including a three-mile radius and a section of the Interurban Trail.

She also works collaboratively with the Kent Police Department to treat the city’s six-mile-long section of the trail.

The trail, once riddled with graffiti from Algona to Renton, is more appealing today, thanks to Van Geystel and friends.

Supporters have grown to know and help Van Geystel along the way.

“I have Jerry, who regularly rides the Interurban Trail out there helping me,” she said. “He is my ‘eyes.'”

Van Geystel treats residential and commercial properties. Some business owners often are unaware they have been hit by graffiti, Van Geystel said, so she makes it her business to help out, applying a fresh coat of matching paint.

For the most part, cooperative homeowners and merchants appreciate the assist.

“If they are not there, I touch it up,” Van Geystel said. “Most of the time, people say, ‘thank you’ or ‘yes, please do.'”

Van Geystel, 65, is a retired assistant manager for the Washington State Liquor Control Board. She is single but has her share of friends.

Her partner, Kate Johnson, occasionally rides with her in the fight against graffiti. Most of the time, she works alone, undeterred.

“They know I’m out there alone,” she said. “It’s not difficult work, but it does take time.”

By doing her part, she has made Auburn better.

“When I first started the first years, (graffiti) was persistent, and now, in my area, it is basically gone,” she said.

Van Geystel and City leaders hope more volunteers come aboard and work their neighborhoods.

“I feel wonderful by doing it,” Van Geystel said. “I have met so many wonderful people on the trail. So many people stop and thank me for what I am doing.”

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To learn more about the City’s graffiti abatement program, call 253-288-3158 at visit www.auburnwa.gov.