written by Marlee Eckman
What happens when 180 people get together on the same day, all wearing the same shirt, and you give them trash bags?
6.4 tons of trash gets removed from the creek!
As I’ve been reflecting on this year’s clean-up the feeling that keeps coming up is immense gratitude. Gratitude to the community for continually supporting the creek and the Council. Gratitude to the amazing Creek Captains that helped to lead all of the sites and keep volunteers safe. And gratitude to the amazing watershed that we get to live, work, and play in.
Some of the fun finds from this year’s clean-up include:
- 11 Shopping carts
- 2 Heaters
- 3 Bicycles
- 10 tires
- 8 scooters
This year we had a very competitive battle for the weirdest, coolest thing found in the creek. Some of the favorites for the Golden Garbage Can Award included a children’s bath toy that sang baby shark, a dog toy that oinked, and a vintage suitcase. But the big winner was a stuffed dragon aptly named “Rubbage” outfitted with a plastic fireman’s helmet and a children’s scooter. Community members decided that Rubbage is the first member of the Johnson Creek fire brigade.
This year we continued our partnership with Ground Score Association to ensure that our houseless community in the watershed is engaged and educated about the clean-up event, is given the opportunity to participate, and is provided with resources to dispose of their trash. We also worked with our partners at SOLVE to ensure we had plenty of trash bags and gloves to keep volunteers safe.
Thank you to all of the groups that joined us: AFSCME Union, Boys Team Charity, Sunrise Youth Movement, Walker Emulsions, and PGE.
Thank you to Junk It Junk Removal, Rebel Cricket Screen prints, and Salvador Molly’s for providing trash services, t-shirt printing, and delicious tamales.
A huge thank you to this year’s sponsors and partners. We could not do this important work with you! Thank you Clackamas Water Environment Services, Metro Regional Refresh Fund, Mintkeski Family Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation, Portland Parks and Recreation, North Clackamas Parks and Recreation District, City of Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services, Portland General Electric, Ground Score Association, SOLVE, East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District, and Junk It Portland.