7 community cleanups to volunteer for in Philadelphia
Help your community be litter-free by cleaning up weeds, collecting trash, or planting trees.
You’re not alone in complaining about the trash on your block. Philly has a serious trash issue — so much so that the city spends about $48 million a year to deal with it. But there is something you can do to help spiff your neighborhood up a bit: Participate in a block cleanup.
As Fishtown resident Arthur Meckler, 74, explains, “If you don’t do it, it’s not gonna get done.”
Meckler has spent half his life volunteering at community cleanups. For the last 30 years, he has led Friends of Fishtown volunteer cleanups at Palmer Park. “We can do things the city doesn’t have the resources to do,” Meckler said.
» READ MORE: How to organize a block cleanup in Philadelphia
Here are seven community cleanups you can volunteer at in your neighborhood. Some even coincide with Earth Day on April 22.
Every Saturday, Fishtown community members get together at 9:30 a.m. to clean Palmer Park. Folks are welcome to help with trash picking, sweeping, tree maintenance, and installing fences and planters. Gloves, tools, trash bags, and masks will be provided on site. Meckler recommends wearing clothes you don’t mind getting dirty and wearing long sleeves to avoid getting scratches.
🗓️ Saturdays, ⌚9:30 a.m.📍Frankford Ave & East Palmer Street, 2346 E Susquehanna Ave., 📞215-485-6698, 🌐facebook.com
Darby Creek is home to the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum. Bald eagles, musk turtles, fish, and bats call this urban oasis home. As the refuge prepares for a spring clean up, you can volunteer to pick litter. Bags, gloves, and collection equipment will be provided to all volunteers. To register, email erika_scarborough@fws.gov.
🗓️ April 22, ⌚9 a.m.- noon,📍8601 Lindbergh Blvd, 📞 215-365-3118, 🌐facebook.com
Cherry Hill residents can help clean Cooper River Park on April 22. Bags and gloves will be provided, but you can bring your trash grabbers and buckets. This community cleanup is part of the “Trail to 1,000,000 Pounds” event — an initiative created by apparel company Keep Nature Wild in 2018 to collect one million pounds of trash from trails, parks, and cities by Earth Day 2023. Volunteers will meet outside the park’s parking lot, at the corner of Cuthbert Blvd and N. Park Drive. Sign up on Eventbrite.
🗓️ April 22, ⌚10 a.m.-noon,📍510 Park Blvd 510 Park Boulevard Cherry Hill, NJ, 🌐eventbrite.com
Are you looking to give back to the planet on Earth Day? Help pull weeds and plant trees at Awbury Arboretum. You can choose between planting trees, shrubs, and perennials in neighborhoods around Awbury with Philly Forests, or planting with the Philadelphia Horticultural Society (PHS). Make sure to bring gloves and register with Philly Forest and PHS.
🗓️ April 22, ⌚9 a.m.- 1 p.m.,📍6336 Ardleigh St., 📞 215-259-8388🌐awbury.org
Philly Forests holds a farm work day on Wednesdays, for folks looking to garden while cleaning up. You can expect to help with weeding, wood chipping, mulching, and planting. There are only five spots available for volunteers each week, so make sure to sign up early.
🗓️ May 3-June 28, ⌚9 a.m.- noon,📍6336 Ardleigh St., 🌐phillyforests.com
If you want to organize a community cleanup but don’t know how to start, check out The Block Gives Back on June 10. Folks can learn about city and community resources and pick up free supplies for community cleanups (including brooms, dustpans, gloves, and trash bags). Councilmember-At-Large Isaiah Thomas organizes this event. Reserve a spot on Eventbrite.
🗓️ June 10, ⌚10 a.m.- 3 p.m.,📍221 E Wyoming Ave 221 East Wyoming Ave. (at Feltonville Recreation Center), 📞 215-686-3446/7, 🌐eventbrite.com
There is an unmarked African American burial ground in Northeast Philadelphia. As The Society to Preserve Philadelphia African American Assets and the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia work to turn it into a memorial, they need 20 volunteers to help clean the ground. To participate, you must be over 18, fully cover your limbs (due to poison ivy), and bring your own tools. Gloves, clippers, pruners, and rakes are welcome but refrain from using weed whackers, shovels, or anything automatic. Sign up on Eventbrite.
🗓️ April 22, ⌚noon- 3 p.m.,📍Benjamin Rush State Park (east end) 15001 Roosevelt Boulevard, 🌐eventbrite.com