Adopt a Block - Shenandoah County
Photo by Jeanne Russell
What is Adopt a Block?
Adopt a Block is an informal organization made up of individuals who have vowed to keep a small area of their community free of litter for 1 year. It is a commitment. Each individual agrees to make sure one small section is kept clean. The idea is that if we each consistently do a little clean up - we can move mountains of trash - literally!
History
I live in Edinburg, Virginia. It is a beautiful place nestled between two mountain ranges smack in the middle of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia.
My son and I love to take long walks along winding country roads just a short distance from our house on main street. Soon after we began our walking tradition, we discovered that we needed to take a trash bag to pick up the litter that marred our wonderful walks. Unfortunately we were soon overwhelmed. There was simply too much trash for us to tackle day after day. Our walks had become clean up missions and lost their appeal.
So we decided that we would just make it our duty to pick up part of the trash on one section of our walk. If we could not clean up the whole route, at least we could make sure that one section remained nice.
The Dream
Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone committed to keep one section of the street clean? That way we could have a nice litter free environment without over taxing any individual person or group.
The Concept
If everyone did just a little each week to clean up our environment, we could accomplish great things. That is it. No big sweeping plans or expensive programs. Just a few people committing a little time and effort on a continuous basis. No one is asked to do too much. Everyone is asked to do a little. That way no one gets burned out or overwhelmed.
Adopt a Block
We are asking people to make a commitment to clean up their neighborhoods, playgrounds, highways, and waterways, one block at a time. That is it. If you live in an ugly urban environment, maybe you can commit to keeping the 50 ft. from your front door to the corner clean.
See what we are doing in Edinburg, VA
The Commitment
Each adopt a block volunteer, signs a commitment to walk their area at least once a week to clean up trash. If you are going to be out of town, have a friend do it for you.
You sign a commitment for one year. That is it.
Print out the commitment certificate (click on red box), fill it in and send it to
Adopt a Block
PO Box 19
Edinburg, VA 22824
or send an e-mail to jeanner@shentel.net letting us know where you plan to start. *Please don’t take on more than is easy. This is a year long commitment so you want to make sure you can do it. Maybe you can team up with a friend or family member.
Please send us “before” and “after” pictures. You can also share stories about how your life is being affected in other ways because you decided to make this commitment. You might become friends with a neighbor. You might find a new community spirit of ownership springs up where there had been nothing. Who knows?
The Future
As we gain members, we would like to hook up with google or yahoo maps to map the areas covered. For now we will just record the sections on this website - Please provide name and e-mail. We will not share this information. We will just use the first names on this site.
Eventually we will solicit help from the companies who make those litter pick up sticks etc.
For now we are just a group of individuals doing a little bit...
Let’s see where this goes.
If you have any ideas, suggestions, or want to offer help, please contact Jeanne at jeanner@shentel.net.
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