Students who were too busy attending classes Tuesday still have an opportunity to celebrate Earth Day and do their part to clean up the Earth.
To culminate the Earth Week activities taking place around the city, Green Columbus is hosting a city-wide volunteer event Saturday.
Volunteers can choose from 49 different work sites around the Columbus area, with jobs ranging from planting trees to picking up trash.
Volunteers can register for the event at nowgetbusy.org. Volunteering takes place from 8 a.m. – noon Saturday, with exact times depending on each site’s needs.
“We’re hoping that 2,500 people volunteer in the morning,” event organizer Tad Dritz said. “We have plenty of open opportunities for people to volunteer right now, but they are filling up quickly.”
In the spirit of environmentalism, Dritz encourages participants to bike or take the bus to their volunteer site.
“COTA is donating bus passes to everybody so the bus rides will be free,” Dritz said. “Everybody who works at a morning work site is going to be getting directions on how to get down to the park by public transportation and by bike.”
As a reward for volunteering their time, participants will be treated to a celebration at Goodale Park featuring bands, speakers and even a recycled goods fashion show. Every participant will receive a token for a free lunch donated by Whole Foods, Giant Eagle, Jenny’s Ice Cream, Clintonville Community Market and others.
Mayor Michael B. Coleman is expected to speak at the park at 5:45 p.m.
Benefits are being held around the city this week to raise money for local environmental organizations. Benefits contributing to the fund include a concert at High Five on Tuesday night, Apple Green Drinks night at Bristol Bar on Thursday and a Whole Foods’ 5 percent CommUnity Giving Day on Tuesday. Volunteers will have the opportunity to decide which organizations should receive the money that has been raised.
“Morning volunteers will be able to vote on how the money from our benefits gets distributed,” Dritz said. “After you get your lunch you place the token in the jar that has the name of your environmental group on it and we will divide up the money that way.”
This is the second year for this event. Nearly 1,400 central Ohioans volunteered last year at 42 different work sites. This year’s sponsors include the Columbus Foundation, the CW and Whole Foods.
There are numerous work site locations close to campus where students can volunteer, including a campus-area litter audit that will meet on 16th Avenue.
Anna Gerber can be reached at [email protected].
