Politics & Government
Dick'll Do It and So Can You: Hands on Stow Event Saturday
Volunteers can beautify Stow by picking up trash Saturday in the annual clean up event.
It only takes two hours to make a difference.
Stow residents, organizations and community groups are invited to make their community a cleaner place to live and work June 25.
That is the date for the annual Hands On Stow Day, when people meet to pick up trash from the sides and medians of Stow’s main roads.
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Armed with trash bags and wearing fluorescent yellow t-shirts, the volunteers work in crews of three to five people and pick up everything from loose papers to pop cans and more, transforming what once was an eyesore to a clean strip of land along the road.
Stow residents and Hands On Stow co-chairmen Tom McKinney and Matt White started this annual event in 2004.
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“I started it because I was a concerned citizen,” said McKinney. “When I was driving on the main roads, I saw junk all over. I mentioned it to someone else who knew Matt White and so he got involved. I don’t want people — not just residents, but also people driving through Stow — to see all the junk. We want it to look good for everyone.”
Every crew has their own route, according to McKinney. The main roads that are covered include Fishcreek Road, Graham Road, Stow Road, Call Road and State Route 59.
The hours set for the clean up day are 9 a.m. to noon, but McKinney is flexible about the hours for each crew.
“Some crews start as early as 7 a.m. and are finished by 9 a.m. We only ask crews to work for two hours that morning, as long as they are done by 1 p.m. when all of the trash is picked up from the roads," he said.
Dick’ll Do It Trash Removal, located in Stow, donates their services to pick up all the trash bags around town that day.
As a thank you to volunteers, anyone who wears their Hands On Stow t-shirt to the Graham Road Handle’s Ice Cream that day will get a free scoop of ice cream. will give a free range token to anyone wearing their Hands On Stow shirt to the golf course that day as well.
Individuals and groups can register for the event by visiting www.HandsOnStow.com or calling Tom McKinney at 330-673-3443.
McKinney’s ultimate goal for Hands On Stow is to have neighborhoods participate in the day as well.
“I would love to see 10 neighborhoods in Stow participating in Hands On Stow Day every year,” said McKinney. “So on one given day, we might have like 500 people cleaning up our neighborhoods. It makes a difference. It really does.”