News

Sound Rivers is celebrating a major milestone, and the person who’s making it happen, this week.

On Friday, Gus Vandermeeren will fill up his 10,000th bag of trash from Raleigh roadways — an estimated 150,000 pounds of litter.

“Six years ago, I was watching TV and saw something about trash in the oceans. It inspired me to pick up a kitchen trash bag and walk out in my neighborhood, picking up road trash,” Gus wrote in an email. “That led to an intense hobby/obsession for picking up litter almost every day that weather permits. I even sold my car and bought a cargo van to support my hobby.”
Gus rescued Raleigh roads and waterways from 75 tons of trash through bitter cold, brutal heat and three major surgeries.

“Reaching this goal fills me with a great feeling of achievement,” Gus wrote.

He and friends, along with Neuse Riverkeeper Samantha Krop will be gathering together on Friday night to celebrate Gus’s achievement.

Thank you, Gus, for all the work you’ve done to keep the Neuse River litter-free!

If you’d like to host your own cleanup, Sound Rivers can help! Reach out to Sound Rivers Volunteer Coordinator Emily Fritz at emily@soundrivers.org.