SOLVE comes to downtown Vancouver for an urban clean-up day, and around 80 volunteers showed up to participate

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

An army of volunteers took over downtown Vancouver on Friday morning, dressed in bright green, blue, and pink vests, in an effort to SOLVE a problem and give the city a “facelift.”

It was the inaugural Pick It Up, Vancouver, an event put on by SOLVE and presented by Killian Pacific and a number of other sponsors.

The goal: To clean up downtown Vancouver, which will help the environment.

“It’s really critical that we’re picking up the trash that’s on the ground before it floats into our waterways,” said Kris Carico, chief executive officer of SOLVE, a nonprofit that works to improve the health of natural areas and neighborhoods. “We are bringing communities together from all across Oregon and Southwest Washington to take care of our natural and urban areas.”

Approximately 80 volunteers showed up, and they were given gloves, vests, and reacher pick-up tools to assist in their mission.

Ted and Sue Robinson moved to downtown Vancouver two years ago after living for years on the east coast.

“I hope people don’t take it for granted,” Sue said of the natural beauty in and around the city. “Being able to see all this gorgeousness, it’s amazing. I hope you appreciate it.”

They just returned to Vancouver from a vacation. A little jet-lagged, they said, they still had to come out to Pick It Up, Vancouver.

“We love the city and we want to give back somehow,” Ted said. “We do a lot of walking in the neighborhood. It’s our neighborhood. We want it to be clean and look nice. We’re not afraid to help out.”

Chelsea Rooklyn, brand and impact manager at Killian Pacific, said her company enjoys this “perfect partnership” with SOLVE. 

“We really care about our environment and having a personal connection to the work,” Rooklyn said, noting that Killian Pacific encourages all of its employees to volunteer.

She also appreciates that SOLVE is more than cleaning up beaches and rivers. 

“Our cities really need our help, too,” Rooklyn said. “Everybody is trying to find something to get involved in and make a difference. Big or small, this is a great way to do it.”

Among the other sponsors for Pick It Up, Vancouver were Melvin Mark, KOIN 6, and OnPoint Community Credit Union.

Jeff Bilski, a branch manager at OnPoint, also serves on the board for SOLVE. 

“We are so excited that we are sponsoring this event in Vancouver. We’ve done them in Portland and have had such great success. It’s wonderful to see when they come through and clean up. It makes such a difference. It gives downtown a facelift. I’m excited to do that down here in Vancouver.”

SOLVE officials gave volunteers a safety briefing before they were sent on their way, with instructions on what not to pick up, such as needles. Volunteers were encouraged to note where needles were so trained handlers could dispose of them later in the day. 

And then they were off to clean up the streets of Vancouver. With an extra vibe in their step, doing it together as one big team.