Giving Back - International Coastal Cleanup

My first YMCA volunteer opportunity occurred yesterday. It involved removing trash from the coastal area along Tampa Bay. What was funny is that the place we were cleaning was only a few minutes from where I work. There is a beautiful park on Cypress Street that has a beach and a lot of nice places to walk. I will suggest it to my co-workers as a place to take a lunch to one day.

Here are some facts about the cleanup ...

Benefits of the International Coastal Cleanup

• Join half a million volunteers around the world to make a stand for our oceans and waterways.
• Be part of collecting data presented to world leaders regarding ocean policies.
• Receive service hours for giving back to the community.
• Free T-shirt or tote bag and other giveaways while supplies last.

We arrived around 8:00 and we were pleased to see several boxes of Krispy Kreme donuts. We met our YMCA team and picked up our gloves and 'trash-grabbers'. My wife was in charge of the clipboard. Part of the project was to document the objects that people are discarding.

Most of the items probably were objects that boaters threw overboard. We found many bottles (plastic and glass), Styrofoam, plastics, etc. Dozens of trash bags were filled.

Getting to the items was the tricky part. You had to ease your way down a hill to where the water met land. Once you made it through the weeds and trees, you could pick up the objects and toss it up to a teammate. I survived with only a few scratches. I narrowly missed being eaten by an ant hill. Overall, it was fun (and a good workout).

There were several hundred volunteers from many different companies, schools, and other organizations.

It felt good to make a difference.

I look forward to my next opportunity to give back.