The Big 5-0
Today, Waste-Free Dayton reached an incredible milestone—our 50th litter cleanup! We kicked off our first cleanup on March 2, 2021, just down the street from where we gathered today. Now, a little over three years later, we’ve hit 50 cleanups, a number we never imagined reaching so quickly when we first started.
Some pics from our first cleanup in March 2021:
While we’re proud of this achievement, we know it wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication of our amazing volunteers. Over the years, they’ve been the heart and soul of our efforts. Just this year alone, we’ve tracked 528 volunteer hours across 14 cleanups, where we’ve collected a staggering 53,860 pounds of litter and debris. It’s mind-boggling to think about how far we’ve come from that small group of people who just wanted to serve our community back in 2021. What started as a few weeks of cleanups has grown into a monthly tradition, and we have no plans to stop—these cleanups are a key focus of our mission.
Today, we took a moment to celebrate this milestone. Many of our volunteers stayed afterward to enjoy pizza and canned water (because aluminum is infinitely recyclable!) in the Newcom Plain Community Garden. We had a blast with music, conversations, and even got to meet some local residents who joined in on the fun. We made sure the celebration was as low-waste as possible, with homemade decorations (shoutout to Natalie, Sarah, and Kathleen for their creativity!), composted pizza boxes and napkins, and recycled cans. Only a tiny bit ended up in the landfill—just the stickers on the pizza boxes!
And guess what? We’re not slowing down! Our next litter cleanup is just a week away, and then we’re diving into September with a packed schedule for Sustainable September. We’ve got fundraising events, a brand-new social media campaign, and a return to NIPCOC for karaoke, just to name a few exciting things on the horizon.
Thank you for reading and for your continued support of Waste-Free Dayton. Together, we’re working towards a healthier and more sustainable future.
Pictures from today:
