The streets of Kinston are looking a little cleaner. A local group who call themselves, Trash Bashers, are meeting biweekly to combine fitness and trash pickup.

“I was inspired by an article I read in an Oprah Winfrey magazine on plogging,” said Amy Albritton. “Plogging is basically picking up trash while running. I love to run, and I was aware of how I felt myself being impacted by the amount of unsightly litter in our neighborhoods and in our community.”

Albritton plogged with her running buddy, Amy Paris. The idea took root when Albritton and her mother, Debbie Anderson made a commitment on their Monday morning walks to pick up trash and then shared their plans on Facebook. Within a week, Seraphim Smith mentioned wanting to join them along with their neighbors Austin Moore and Willie Jacobs.

“Doing something such as this is important to people for different reasons. It is important to me because I found myself unhappy with all the litter on the streets as I exercise and as I drive down them,” said Albritton.

Albritton has issued a challenge to the citizens of Kinston, to pick up five pieces of litter today. She feels as if the issue of litter has become a bigger problem and believes that everyone should value and show pride in their community and strives to set an example that she hopes others will follow.

“All we need are people who just care about this issue who are seeking other like-minded people to join us,” said Albritton.

The group calls themselves the Trash Bashers and have a group on Facebook. They meet on Saturdays at 10:00 am and on Mondays at 8:30 am with the meeting locations posted on their group page. Participants who are interested in joining should bring kitchen-sized trash bags, a pickup stick or a grabber and gloves.

“My goal is to use this as a way to be involved in my community. I work in Greenville and often feel disconnected. I am using this as a way to feel connected to my community. To sum it up building community while supporting our community,” said Albritton.

While the group has not sought support from any city or state agency, their biggest challenge is having a place to take the trash that is picked up. They are currently dividing it up and taking it to their trash cans at home.

“I get excited about how to celebrate getting to 100 bags of trash or even 1,000 bags of litter off the streets. I get excited to see other people be excited about this and want to join in.  I want to drive down the roads in Kinston knowing I have the satisfaction of trying to make a change,” said Albritton.