Adopt-A-Block

South Burlington, VT Adopt-A-Block.

The Commitment: For a Cleaner Community, whereby individual residents, businesses, or group sign up for a public street, block, park, trail, or wetland of their choosing: then keep their adopted area clean, whether that means daily pick up, a weekly cleanup or a monthly effort: throughout the year. 

There are about 350 streets in South Burlington, along with many parks, trails, and wetlands. Choose a location to adopt and sign up today. City Beauty Matters.

By signing up to Adopt-A-Block, you can help keep your neighborhood clean. Clean City is yours to keep or lose: choose to keep it: Clean.

Here is how the program works.

Send an email to Bernie(dot)paquette@yahoo(dot)com and let me know what road (or section of road) or park or other public area you would like to adopt. You can sign up yourself, your family, or your business. Then keep your adopted area clean, whether that means daily pick up, a weekly cleanup or a monthly effort: throughout the year. Sign ups are for one year intervals. 

Bernie urges us all to maintain a litter free environment through caring, contribution, and community; in order to protect our water, wildlife, and human health. 

SB Business proprietors please commit to clean up your storefronts clean throughout the year. Treat dropped litter like snow; pick it up shortly after it falls.

Clean up tips.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when collecting litter:

• Wear bright-colored clothing so that you are easily visible to passing motorists.
• Five-gallon buckets or plastic bags work well as containers to carry the litter as you walk.
• Wear gloves.  
• Do not attempt to pick up any hazardous material or any large, heavy items.
• Walk on one side of the street, towards traffic, then crossing the street for the return trip.  Please be very alert.
• It is perfectly fine for more than one person to volunteer for the same adopt-a-spot.

·       Take the time to enjoy your surroundings! 

        

Share your successes, Send me your pics!

Litter clean up activities can be fun: 

sharing fun is contagious!

If you want to share your experiences as you pick up litter on your adopted block here are some things you could consider.

• Email me photos of the individual or group performing clean ups, and before and after – site photos, and I will post them. 
• Include volunteer’s names and the name of your Pick Up Artists group if you have one and the location and date cleaned.
• Include quotes or story about your clean up actions.
• Another idea- send me photo of your streets sign with the street in the background.

Another option is to share  your insight “When I pick up litter I feel…(fill in the blanks) and I will publish with what others have shared @ http://www.litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2013/04/earth-day-how-i-feel-when-i-pick-up.html

                     The focus of Adopt-A-Block is Community 

The aim of the Adopt-a-block program awaken a greater sense of ownership and responsibility for impacts we have on the local environment.   

 Fostering community connections, making visible the commitment of folks who pick up litter year round, and increasing the number of volunteers including- individuals, community groups and businesses- are each part of the intent of the program. 

 Socializing as you clean up with others in Y/our town, city, or village.

 Provides a civics lesson and a positive example to children and others.

 Relationships created and nurtured through invitation and participation.

 Coalitions/Alliances: Connecting businesses, non-profits, and community groups creates synergy where 1+1=3.

 Small local projects are great catalyst for change in behavior and action while building trust and cohesion in the community.

Earth is the only planet with people and litter-easier to clean it up than move.

For green and clean, we cheer the Adopt-a-Block team; for love of community, we take pride in our public spaces; to demonstrate the pride and protect that which we love, we must bear responsibility for her cleanliness. Rain or snow, summer or winter, we must continue to look for new ways to litter less and to pick up SB Vermont.

Clean Biz Alert. If you see litter on a business or storefront, remember you can use the Clean Up Coupon. Print it @ https://sites.google.com/site/litterwithastorytotell/clean-up-coupon

    
2015

SB litter clean up volunteers and their adopted streets.

• Jane Boisvert: Lewis Rd, Holmes Rd, IDX Drive.

• Susan Saferstein: Pheasant Way, Quail Run, Keari Lane, Baycrest, Harbor. 

• Walt Luchini: Jaycee Park

• South Burlington Fire Dept members: Roadside areas around the FD Stations.

• Tom Chittenden: The Chittenden Cider Mill on Dorset St to the welcome to 'Shelburne' sign.
• My daughters and I collected 4.5 yard waste trash bags of litter from the Mill to just past the entrance of Dorset Farms this afternoon. 60% of the trash was alcohol containers. [4/19/2015]
• My girls and I also finished the rest of Dorset to the town line today - another 5 lawn bags collected. [4/24/2015]
• [...] mini Absolute Citron bottles and Sutter Home wine minis (there were, no exaggeration, about 150 of these in my stretch of Dorset [Street]. 

• Ann Slattery: Pine St. and Charles St.

• Maida Townsend: Patchen Road from Williston Road to S.D. Ireland. 

• Mark Schwabe & Norman Hamor: Bike path from Forest service - Farrell St-

• The Scarpa Family: Country Club Dr. 

• Glenn & Marga Sproul: Cedar Glenn Dr., Stonehedge Dr. , Bike path Overlok to Swift & Spear

• Rosanne Greco: Nowland Farm Rd. 

• Trader Joe's employees: Wooded & culvert areas behind Trader Joe's.

Litter Pickers, take a look at your chosen area before you pick up litter; than after you pick up litter, take another look at your chosen area. Nice and clean right. Be proud of your effort and the reclaimed public place. 

Watch 'Clean Streets" a Story Corp recording of two retired street cleaners and listen to them describe how they feel after clean ups.

Thank you each for your 'keep my neighborhood clean' commitment to your chosen areas. 

 Newslitter: New Adopt-A-Block members. 

Please welcome the latest Adopter in the SB Adopt-A-Block program: The Scarpa family. They adopted Country Club Drive. This brings us to 11 Adopters covering 22 streets. 

I hope you have a chance to view the SB Green Up Day photos at http://litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2014/05/green-up-day-2014-photos-sb-vt.html, the smiling faces speak of the success of Green Up Day in SB this year. 

Please consider sharing your thoughts and even photos of and about your Adopt A Block clean ups. I would like to post them on my web site to promote your accomplishments as well as to encourage others to join the Adopt A Block program.

Thank You for picking up litter year round. Through caring, community, and contribution you are helping to protect our water, wildlife, and human health.  

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------June 2014 Newslitter  

Spring and summer walks offer the opportunity to join a friend, explore the neighborhood, get some exercise, and enjoy the greenery and flowers of our Vermont landscape. 

The members of the Adopt A Block program add just one more step-they pick up any trash they come upon as they stroll. 

Why?  Read Anne Ferguson’s piece titled “This I Believe-Trash Collecting” @ http://litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2014/06/trash-tramps.html.  See if her sentiments match yours. And read of the unusual tool she uses.

For more inspiration read “What is so great about litter picking?” @ http://www.litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/2013/11/whats-so-great-about-litter-picking-365.html   

2014
SB litter clean up volunteers and their adopted streets.

Thank you each for your-keep my neighborhood clean-commitment to your chosen areas.

  Cedar Glen Road

·            Marga & Glenn Sproul

Charles Street

·       Ann Slattery

Country Club Drive
         ·       Scarpa Family

Dorset Street, from the cross section of Grandview and Dorset to Swift and Dorset.

·       Kelsey Hudson

Four Sisters Rd

·       Rosanne Greco

Hadley Road

·       Paul Engels

 Holmes Rd

·       Jane Boisvert

IDX

·       Jane Boisvert

Jaycee Park

·       Walter Luchini

Keari Lane

·           Susan Saferstein

 Lewis Rd

·       Jane Boisvert

Meadow Road

·       Paul Engels

Mill Pond Lane

·       Chris Shaw

Moss Glenn Lane

·       Chris Shaw

Nowland Farm Road (mile long stretch)

·       Rosanne Greco

Orchard Road

·       Paul Engels

Patchen Road from Williston Road to Valley Ridge

·       Maida Townsend

Pheasant Way

·       Susan Saferstein

Pine Street

·       Ann Slattery

Proctor Avenue

·       Paul Engels

Quail Run

·       Susan Saferstein

Stonehedge Drive

·       Marga & Glenn Sproul

Bike Path (Stonehedge Drive to Overlook Park)

·       Marga & Glenn Sproul

Underhill litter clean up volunteers and their adopted streets.
Thank you each for your-keep my neighborhood clean-commitment to your chosen areas.

Pleasant Valley Road (2 miles of)

·       Leon R. Pacifici