Litter Caterpillars

  • Severe Weather Preparedness Checklist for Volunteer Crews

    Severe Weather Preparedness Checklist for Volunteer Crews

    You've packed the trash bags, someone's bringing grabbers, and a new volunteer has just messaged to ask whether the cleanup will still happen if it rains. You check the forecast again. The harder question isn't whether people will show up. It's whether everyone can get somewhere safe when conditions change. A severe weather preparedness checklist…

  • Volunteer Ocean Cleanup Near Me: 7 Chicago Groups to Join

    Volunteer Ocean Cleanup Near Me: 7 Chicago Groups to Join

    At our first Litter Caterpillars pickup, three of us huddled under a tree in a spring hailstorm, shivering while Ubers canceled one by one, and I realized that cleaning other people's messes felt much easier than cleaning my own. If you've searched volunteer ocean cleanup near me while staring at another weekend with no plans,…

  • Volunteer Safe Haven: How to Build One That Protects

    Volunteer Safe Haven: How to Build One That Protects

    You've set out your old sneakers, checked the cleanup address, and wondered whether anyone will notice if you arrive alone. Then the forecast changes. You still want to help, but you'd like to know who's in charge, what happens if you get cold, and whether you can leave early without disappointing the group. Those are…

  • Trash Removal Service: Costs, Options and How to Choose

    Trash Removal Service: Costs, Options and How to Choose

    You stare at a garage corner on Friday night. You see a broken dresser, three bags you forgot to set out, a mattress you want gone, and a can of old paint you fear to touch. You want a trash removal service you can trust, and you want a price you can plan around. I…

  • Rain or Shine Weather: Stay Safe and Keep Showing Up

    Rain or Shine Weather: Stay Safe and Keep Showing Up

    You set your alarm for a Saturday cleanup, check the sky at dawn, and see rain on one street, sun on the next, and wind pushing both sideways. You pack a trash bag and a grabber, then you face the big question. Do you go, slow down, or stop? Read the Forecast and Make the…

  • Community Health Resilience You Can Measure

    Community Health Resilience You Can Measure

    Say you stand on your corner on a Saturday morning and you know three neighbors by sight and nobody by name. You pick up trash for an hour, and you leave with a full bag and the same three faces. I want you to leave with a name you can call when heat or snow…

  • Severe Weather Safety in the Workplace Guide

    Severe Weather Safety in the Workplace Guide

    Say you meet your crew at a vacant lot on Saturday, grabbers in hand, and the sky changes while you argue about one more block. You need one person who can end the morning before the weather ends it for you. The Hailstorm That Made Me Call a Stop I still see my first pickup…

  • Severe Weather Preparedness Week Playbook for 2026

    Severe Weather Preparedness Week Playbook for 2026

    Say you drag a trash bag across a wet Chicago lot, hail stings your ears, and your ride app cancels for the third time. You don't need a pep talk in that minute. You need a call you made before you left home. The 2026 Day Map I Copy First Say a café owner is…

  • Logo and Identity: A Practical Guide for Community Groups

    Logo and Identity: A Practical Guide for Community Groups

    Three volunteers had just finished a litter pickup on Chicago's South Side when hail drove them under a trail shelter. Their cardboard sign dissolved in the rain, but that night, from memory, we drew the first Litter Caterpillars logo. The Day Three Volunteers Got Caught in a Chicago Hail Storm The spring afternoon had started…

  • How to Build a Severe Weather Safety Plan That Works

    How to Build a Severe Weather Safety Plan That Works

    Say you're halfway through a Saturday cleanup when thunder interrupts the scrape of litter grabbers, and someone asks whether you can finish the block. Your severe weather safety plan should give you an answer before anyone asks. Which Hazards Your Plan Must Cover Start with the question your crew will ask first: Which hazards can…

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