Keeping Wayne County beautiful, two miles at a time

The litter-bugs always seem to have time; they never stop.”

- Michael Coppola

HAWLEY, PA — Michael Coppola has been commuting on U.S. Route 6 for the past two decades. He’s driven past a lot of roadside litter in that time, and in recent years he started getting fed up with it.

“It wasn’t so much the trash that was bothering me as much as the fact that nobody seemed to be doing anything about it,” he said.

On Earth Day weekend in 2017, Coppola decided that if he wanted to see anything done, he’d have to start doing it himself. His first cleanup effort was not exactly a success as far as participation goes: four people showed up that Friday to help pick up trash throughout Hawley. On Saturday, Coppola spent the day picking up garbage alone.

Though perhaps a discouraging start, Coppola said this was the unofficial inception of Keep Hawley Honesdale Beautiful (KHHB), a group dedicated to mitigating the amount of litter in the area.

Throughout the summer of 2018, Coppola continued organizing cleanup events, utilizing social media, local media and friends in an attempt to boost turnout numbers. On April 14 of that year, he got 25 people to help with a cleanup along Route 6 from the Settlers Inn in Hawley to the Wayne County Ford dealership in Honesdale. The volunteers collected 165 bags of trash in three hours.

Coppola tried to put together more cleanups in the following months, but the struggle to recruit volunteers continued. He soon realized that for KHHB to make an impact, he’d have to adjust the group’s strategy.

“After most of my summer of 2018 was spent cleaning 10-plus miles of Hawley and Honesdale roads by myself, the mission of the group became to encourage followers to adopt sections of road between our two towns, thus making the group’s goal much more achievable,” he said.

Coppola began recruiting people to take part in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Adopt-A-Highway program, in which participants or groups can sign up to take care of two-mile stretches of road, which they promise to clean up at least twice a year.

Coppola said he acts as a liaison with PennDOT, taking care of registration requirements on behalf of KHHB members.

So far, Jason Merrill, Jeremy Watson, Lynne Reed, Jenna Mauder, Melissa Short, The 507 Country Store, Melissa Palmer Peterson and Dan Santoro have all adopted different two-mile stretches between Honesdale and Hawley, bringing KHHB’s reach to 18 miles in total.

Merrill, who adopted a stretch of highway in Hawley, was an early ally in Coppola’s mission, and a consistent volunteer in cleanup events. Merrill has long been doing his part to pick up trash, but said Coppola’s organizing and planning “took it to the next level.”

Merrill also said that joining the Adopt-A-Highway program was fairly simple. “It’s really easy to do and it’s not a lot of work. A couple of times a year you get six people together, you get both sides and you can get it done in an afternoon,” he said.

A year after cleaning up litter mostly by himself, Coppola’s group has gained attention and support. Members have collected 640 bags of trash and tens of thousands of pounds in large debris, according to Coppola. Its Facebook page is just shy of 1,000 followers, and it has received support from local businesses including the Twisted Rail Tavern, The Dime Bank and Harrison Signs.

Coppola is working to keep broadening KHHB’s membership, which he said has been the most significant challenge. “People really do care and want to help,” he said. “Many just don’t have the time, and that is understandable, but the litter-bugs always seem to have time; they never stop.”

Those interested in joining or supporting KHHB are encouraged to visit www.facebook.com/hawleyhonesdalepa to stay updated on events and important information.