GRANITEVILLE — Cub Scouts from Packs 96 and 100 spent part of their Saturday cleaning up East Boston Camps and surrounding trails in Westford.
As part of the worldwide Scouts Trash the Trash Day initiative, Scouts collected more than 75 pounds of litter in just two hours.
The cleanup took place on May 2 during the annual global event, which is held on the first Saturday in May, when Scouts around the world participate in community cleanups and environmental service projects.
Scouts Trash the Trash Day is an International Messengers of Peace project that challenges Scouts to bring a friend or family member and collect at least one kilogram, or 2.2 pounds, of trash each. The initiative is designed not only to improve local communities, but also to educate the public about Scouting and encourage community involvement in service projects.
According to Pack 100 leader Erica Chilson, the idea to participate came after she saw online posts showing trash buildup around the Stony Brook Conservation Area and East Boston Camps.
“I thought this sounds like a great community service project,” Chilson said. “Especially after seeing many postings on Facebook of people showing how the conservation area has just been trashed.”
Chilson signed Pack 100 up for the event and later invited Pack 96 to join the effort after discussing the idea with Pack 96 leader Bob Motavalli.
The collaboration marked the first time the two Westford Cub Scout packs worked together for the annual event. Chilson said she felt it was meaningful to see multiple packs unite for a common cause.
“It was a very beautiful thing because often you feel like packs are in competition with one another for membership,” Chilson said. “But this was two packs coming together for the greater good.”
A total of 22 children participated in the cleanup, including registered Cub Scouts, younger siblings and a den chief from Troop 195. Scouts cleaned areas around the lower campsite, pond trails, picnic areas, parking lots and sections near the railway.
The groups worked from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., hauling trash bags and using carts, grabbers and gloves to safely collect litter throughout the wooded area.
“It was starting to rain, and it was about 6 p.m. on a Saturday,” Motavalli said. “Had we spent more time, we would have taken more trash out of that.”
Among the most common items collected were alcohol bottles and discarded dog waste bags left alongside the trails. One of the most shocking discoveries was a rusted grill thrown into the woods.
“I think we were all taken aback,” Chilson said. “It’s sad. Really, you couldn’t bring this back and properly dispose of it?”
The grill, which weighed roughly 20 pounds, was safely removed using a small cart and later brought to metal recycling.
Leaders said the amount of trash surprised both the adults and Scouts, especially considering they cleaned only a portion of the conservation area.
“We were excited we picked up 75 pounds of trash,” Chilson said. “But then the second thought was, ‘Wow, that’s 75 pounds of trash. How awful is that?’”
For many of the Scouts, the cleanup carried extra meaning because East Boston Camps is a place they frequently visit for hikes, fishing and overnight camping trips.
“This place is important to us,” Chilson said. “The pond is where we’ll go fishing and the upper campsite is where we have our campout.”
Motavalli said the Scouts felt proud knowing they were helping improve a place they personally care about.
“They all had a sense of accomplishment,” he said. “They were all happy that they could do it, and they all want to continue doing it.”
The cleanup also became an opportunity to teach environmental responsibility and community stewardship, values both leaders said are central to the mission of Scouting.
“Part of the Scouting mission has always been to take care of the community, to always be active in their community and to participate,” Motavalli said.
Chilson added that projects like the cleanup help teach children lessons they can carry throughout their lives.
“You’re preparing youth with impact, purpose and leadership,” Chilson said. “Helping prepare people to make ethical, moral choices over their lifetime.”
The leaders hope the event inspires more community involvement in future cleanup efforts throughout Westford.
“Maybe next year more community members get involved,” Chilson said. “Let’s clean up our town.”
Reflecting on the event, both leaders shared a simple message for the community.
“We only have one planet,” Chilson said. “We’ve got to take care of it.”
