A Fort 91原创 resident who has developed a habit of picking up litter is hoping to encourage others to do the same.
Bryan Miller has launched a website, , to bring like-minded people together to take the 鈥減ick up pledge鈥 and commit to binning litter when they see it.
Miller hopes to encourage people to form garbage and graffiti clean-up groups who make regular sweeps of their community to keep it clean.
鈥淲e all should be part of making the community we live in better,鈥 the site says.
鈥淸A] simple way to give back could be just picking weeds that grow near a curb, picking up the garbage on the sidewalk or cleaning up graffiti in your community. It all counts towards giving back and making your local community better.鈥
Miller said he had the idea for a community clean-up movement after attending a 鈥渕assive sit-in鈥 at the Vancouver Art Gallery two years ago that drew more than 5,000 people.
A few days after the demonstration, he returned with his family and could not believe how much garbage, trash, graffiti could be seen on the streets.
鈥淪o I thought to myself: what if those 5,000 people who gathered just a few days before went out into the streets and cleaned up all the trash, picked all the growing weeds, cleaned up all the graffiti. What would be the compounding effects of change from that?鈥
READ ALSO: New year brings new call for residents to keep Aldergrove clean
On a sunny day outside his home, Miller had no trouble finding discarded trash during a brief stroll along the sidewalk across the street from his house, scooping up handfuls of trash.
鈥淎t the end of the day, I鈥檒l never pick up all the garbage,鈥 Miller told the 91原创 Advance Times.
But if other people develop the same habit, he鈥檚 hoping it will mean a revival of small-town pride in the community that is the birthplace of B.C.
鈥滻 travel around small towns around B.C. in my RV all summer,鈥 Miller remarked.
鈥淚 notice pride [that keeps those communities clean].鈥
READ ALSO: VIDEO: Less litter than expected during annual 91原创 City clean-up
According to Miller Fort 91原创 is treated like a 鈥渢ruck stop鈥 with people carelessly dropping litter.
His advice is to stop ignoring it.
鈥淐lean your path in life,鈥 Miller commented.
鈥淒o your part.鈥
It has become part of his everyday routine and that of his two children.
鈥淎s we walk, as we鈥檙e going for to get ice cream, we clean up,鈥 he said.
鈥淚f you see weeds, pull them. If you see garbage, pick it up.鈥
Anyone interested in forming a volunteer clean-up group through Miller can contact him through the website or by email at info@yourlocalcommunity.ca or by writing PO Box 1273, Fort 91原创 BC V1M 2S7.
dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
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