STRONGSVILLE, Ohio — It doesn't matter where it is or what it is, if it's litter Jill Hankinson will find it and throw it in her massive contractor bag.
"I walk around the streets of Strongsville just picking up litter," said Hankinson.
Hankinson says she was sick and tired of looking at old bottles, papers and wrappers along the busy streets in her community so she bought some vinyl gloves and a grabber and went to work.
"I fill up a bag or so, I try to do a bag a week," she said.
Sometimes her litter walks, as she calls them, are impromptu.
"I pass a yucky street, I park my car get out and go," said Hankinson. "Sounds crazy but I think its effective."
What Hankinson is doing is not only beautifying the community it could also be saving residents money.
According to ODOT, they've spent $40 million tax payer dollars cleaning up litter over the last decade.
ODOT, along with prison inmate crews, have collected 3.8 million bags of trash during that same time period.
"If every person picked up, 10 pieces, or one piece of litter a day, we wouldn't have this problem," she said.
Hankinson says although the trash just keeps piling up, the trick is to never get discouraged and always remind herself why she started this journey.
"You gotta be humble to do this," she said. "But it pays off when the city looks better."
