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Chester County Resident David Shirey Honored With Keep PA Beautiful’s Community Pride Award By Rep. Lawrence

On April 10, Rep. John Lawrence (R-Chester) announced David Shirey was honored with the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Community Pride Award for his exceptional dedication to community improvement in Chester County.

For the past eight years, Shirey has organized a litter cleanup day at 80 locations in southern Chester County, working closely with local volunteers to clean up to 56 miles of roads and collect over 250 bags of trash.

Each year, the event continues to grow. Shirey coordinates over 100 volunteers, assigning groups to specific areas and providing detailed instructions on the tasks at hand.

He also actively engages the community, including athletes and coaches from Avon Grove High School, who now routinely participate in the clean-ups.

Shirey has led efforts to remove litter and trash from state and local roads like the US Route 1 Bypass and Springlawn Road Trail.

Recently, Shirey and a dedicated group of volunteers collected 101 bags of trash along Route 1 between Route 82 and Toughkenamon, PA.

David Shirey was also recently recognized with the Volunteer of the Year Award from Keep Chester County Beautiful.

“Dave deserves recognition for taking action to meet a real community need,” said Rep. Lawrence. “Through his leadership, dozens of volunteers have come together to make a real and lasting impact on our area. I’m grateful for his willingness to serve and lead others.”

Shirey recalls how the litter cleanup day initiative began. “This all started about 12 years ago with me taking a shopping bag for a little walk down from my house. Then I began thinking of how to get help and spread the word.

“A friend is a sign maker, so he set me up, and about six of us decided to do more. Then we got more signs and more people kept calling. Then four signs and now we have eight spread around in key locations.

“Volunteers have come back year after year and now I have two key figures that help me manage these events. But we never stop trying to get better and cover more of Chester County.

“I have even considered calling together township managers around the area to help educate them and share ideas. One last word, education. We have to start with the kids, and you know what, they all need community service hours,” said Shirey.

“David Shirey's unwavering dedication to keeping Chester County clean and beautiful is truly inspiring. His efforts, supported by Rep.John Lawrence's nomination, exemplify the spirit of community pride and environmental stewardship that Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful stands for," said Shannon Reiter, Executive Director, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.

The Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Community Pride Award recognizes outstanding environmental stewardship by an individual, school, community organization or civic group that makes an outstanding commitment to litter control, recycling, or general environmental stewardship.

The Community Pride Award is available to elected officials to recognize those in the community working to change behaviors at the local level.

The award is open on a rolling basis.

For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from KPB, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, visit their YouTube Channel.

The 2025 Pick Up Pennsylvania Initiative is going on now! Questions should be directed to Michelle Dunn at 1-877-772-3673 Ext. 113 or send email to: mdunn@keeppabeautiful.org.

Keep PA Beautiful helps mobilize over 100,000 volunteers a year to pick up litter, clean up illegal dumping and beautify Pennsylvania.

(Photo: David Shirey, fourth from right, Rep. John Lawrence, third from right, and community members and volunteers at the Community Pride ceremony.)

Related Articles This Week:

-- Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Announces Litter Hawk Youth Award Program Winners [PaEN]

-- Keep PA Beautiful Now Accepting Applications For Young Ambassadors Program From Students In Grades 10-12 [PaEN]

-- Chester County Resident David Shirey Honored With Keep PA Beautiful’s Community Pride Award By Rep. Lawrence [PaEN]

-- Little Juniata River Association Organized 150 Volunteers To Clean Up 20 Miles Of River Banks In Blair, Huntingdon Counties [PaEN]

-- PA Resources Council Announces Schedule Of Western PA Household Chemical Collection Events [PaEN]

-- Late Night Road Dumping: Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Continues To Be Dumped On Dirt, Gravel, Paved Roads; DEP Expected To Provide Update At April 24 Meeting [PaEN]

NewsClips:

-- TribLive: Pittsburgh Council Member Warns Skeptics Trash Dumping Emergency Is Not Rubbish

-- WESA: Trash Talk Leads To Discussion At Pittsburgh City Council On Illegal Dumping, Litter

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: There’s Too Much Trash In Pittsburgh, Time To Redd Up

-- WHYY: Philadelphia Boosts Fines And Sues To Collect Penalties For Illegal Dumping: $22,000 For Dumping A Couch?