When RA staff member Nicole Kirby noticed that her local community was rounding up a small group of volunteers to pick up litter around the area, she knew she wanted to help in any way she could. Nicole explained, “My family and I have done litter picks from time to time, and I then spotted that the local ‘Friends of Linthorpe’ group have been doing monthly litter picks […] so I reached out to see if I could help.” The local council has done the best it could to clean up the area, but they were struggling with the financial requirements of keeping up the cleaning efforts.
Setting Up the Act
Nicole was able to get in contact with volunteers from “Friends of Linthorpe,” a volunteer group based in Middlesbrough, United Kingdom, and offered funding for the equipment they needed. She was met with a list of items they compiled, and she went to work gathering the items in order to join the next litter pick. Nicole and her son worked with a group of about ten volunteers to clean up near a cemetery, which was located on a nature preserve. As they worked in small groups, many locals inquired about joining in the cleanup. The groups were able to spread the word about their efforts to clean up the community, and hopefully grow the pool of active volunteers.
Completing the Act
With the funding they received from Random Acts, “Friends of Linthorpe” were able to purchase bin hoops (which were made of recycled fishing gear), gloves, and personalized hi-vis jackets to wear in order to keep them safe on the roadways. Since this is a smaller and newly established group, they had not received any funding previously. Nicole was able to assist by using Random Acts funding to purchase the essential items to make litter picking easier!
At Random Acts, we are proud to support our team and community members in spreading kindness where it is needed most. If you are inspired by Nicole’s story and want to apply for a similar act—or bring your own idea to life—click here to learn more.
