Anyone who’s ever hosted a big party knows how it goes: everybody’s all back-slaps and cheers before and during, but when it comes time for clean-up, it’s you and the crickets.
This year, it’s you, Starbucks and the crickets. Hoping to restore our neighborhoods and waterways to cleanly glory following the annual bacchanalia that marks our Independence Day celebration, Starbucks is spearheading an area-wide clean-up.
Says their press release:
In a follow-up to the Seattle community-supported Family 4th at Lake Union, Starbucks today announced a volunteer event on July 5 to re-beautify the area after the fireworks. As a thank you to Lake Union neighbors for their hospitality, Starbucks is inviting the community to join its partners (employees) for this day of community service.
Sorry, brief pause here to make sure we’ve got the wording straight: they’re thanking us by inviting us to clean-up our own neighborhood. No, no, thank you!
In collaboration with Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), CleanScapes, and the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, Starbucks is coordinating cleanup efforts on land and on the waters of Lake Union. Beginning today, Seattle residents can sign up online for the cleanup event … Volunteers will receive lunch and a t-shirt, compliments of Starbucks, as well as the opportunity to win raffle prizes during the cleanup event. Seattle Public Utilities will be donating all cleanup supplies and CleanScapes will be disposing of all the trash and recycling collected throughout the day.
OK, got it: they’re providing the lunch, a t-shirt, clean-up supplies and hauling away the trash. Minus the clean-up supplies and the hauling away the trash part.
The Puget Soundkeeper Alliance works year-round to remove trash from area lakes, rivers and the Sound. For the past five years, the Alliance has worked in tandem with One Reel to conduct a post-fireworks trash cleanup of Lake Union and will again hit the water in kayaks to remove trash from the lake. Their dedication inspired Starbucks to expand those efforts to the shore.
Volunteers will pick up trash and debris from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on July 5. To sign up for the event and get additional details, visit www.starbucks.com/seattle. Volunteer meet-up locations include:
- South Lake Union: The Center for Wooden Boats
- North Lake Union: Gas Works Park
- Eastlake: location TBD
Limited space is available for the on-water cleanup portion. Visit www.pugetsoundkeeper.org or call 206-297-7002 for details.
OK, we’ll turn down the snark. It’s a nice gesture. And, in other news, Starbucks announced that as of July 1st, they’ll be offering free wifi in all their stores, putting them on par with what every other coffee shop in the country has been offering for years. Now, if they’d only rename their sizes “small”, “medium” and “large”, I think I’d turn around completely.
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yes, please do turn down your snark. Not all small businesses are owned by saints, and not all large corporations coffee shops managed by jerks.
…but in this case they are. http://sonicsgate.org/
Well said, Jeff. Howard Schultz is a Vente jerk!
Of course, corporations can affect communities positively (fireworks/clean up/health insurance for baristas) and negatively (environmental footprint/Sonics (though I would argue that was Schultz and not Starbucks, which is a publicly traded company and not owned by Schultz)). But when they try to do something good, why look at it in a snarky way? Why not just take it for what it is, a nice gesture.
Love Wallyhood but have to say I think you should give sbux a pass for being part of the solution & saving our fireworks. A simple thanks seems merited here. And what’s wrong with trying to make a community clean up fun & getting a little good pr at the same time?
I like the snark. It is why I read the Wallyhood neighborhood blog over this one.