Trash Party volunteers clean up Columbus
Why it matters: The grassroots Trash Party group has been uniting strangers to pick up litter across Columbus, and its cleanup efforts are drawing praise from city leaders.
Stunning stat: In just a few months, volunteers have already collected 1,500 bags of trash.
They've also hauled away 50 shopping carts, dozens of tires and hundreds of propane tanks, with all the waste totaling over 18,000 pounds.
Flashback: It all started with a Reddit post by local engineer Collin Marshall, who noticed lots of litter along local highways and on the trails near his neighborhood.
"It just feels so easy to get a grabber, get a trash bag and just fill up a bag while you're going on a walk," he tells Axios.
"I figured, there's gotta be more people interested in this than just me."
He was right — though it took time to gain momentum. For the first event, just a friend and a roommate joined Marshall in cleaning up an alleyway.
But once he started posting pictures, more people started showing up.
The latest: Today, Trash Party has grown to 30-40 people meeting up every weekend, all from different parts of town and walks of life.
Keep Columbus Beautiful, a city improvement program, has provided supplies.
Schmidt's donated free meals via its food truck, and businesses like JPMorgan Chase have sent volunteers to help.
Between the lines: Beyond cleaning up litter, Trash Party volunteers are bonding over their shared desire to do good at a time when people are feeling increasingly isolated.
They're also connecting with local people and places Marshall says are often "forgotten," including homeless encampments.
What's next: Marshall plans to keep hosting events as long as interest endures.
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