Earth Day Trash Dash 2026 Recap

On a warm, windy Earth Day evening in downtown Stillwater, something pretty great happened. 27 community members showed up to make our shared spaces a little cleaner, healthier, and more cared for.

This year’s Earth Day Trash Dash was all about keeping things simple, accessible, and impactful. No long time commitments. No special skills required. Just people showing up, grabbing a pair of gloves and a litter picker, and getting to work.

Over the course of about an hour, volunteers spread out across downtown, teaming up in small groups to track down litter wherever it likes to hide—along sidewalks, tucked into bushes, and wedged behind planters (turns out trash is pretty good at playing hide-and-seek, especially on a windy day). By the end of the cleanup, the group had collected around 25 pounds of trash—most of it small but mighty offenders like cigarette butts, wrappers, and cups.

Andi Arnold, SSMN Executive Director, and Kelsey Depew, SSMN Comm & Op Manager

And then there was the rebar. One group managed to pull a piece of rebar from near the water—easily the most unexpected item of the evening and a strong contender for “most interesting find.”

While not everyone who signed up made it (a busy spring evening will do that), something even better happened—families and community members passing by noticed the bright yellow vests, asked what was going on, and jumped in to help. It turned a planned event into a more spontaneous, welcoming moment of shared action, which is exactly what Trash Dashes are meant to do.

The overall vibe? Grateful, upbeat, and just a little bit proud. Volunteers appreciated the ease of the event, the visibility of the safety vests (which made it easy to spot fellow do-gooders), and the new litter pickers—which saved a lot of bending over and made the whole experience more approachable.

At its core, the Trash Dash is about more than picking up trash. It’s about creating a visible, tangible way for people to care for the places they live—and to see how small actions add up. Every wrapper removed, every cigarette butt picked up, every conversation shared along the way—it all contributes to healthier waterways, safer habitats for wildlife, and a stronger sense of community stewardship.

In just one hour, on one windy April evening, a group of neighbors came together, made a visible difference, and reminded us all that sustainability doesn’t have to be complicated—it can start with simply showing up.