Kathleen Mendes thinks about beer bottles a lot. And furniture. And car parts.

Those are just a sampling of things she has seen and helped remove from her section of US 180 in northeastern Arizona.

Mendes became an Adopt a Highway volunteer back in October 2010, and has been cleaning between milepost 337 and 339 ever since. Back then there was a lot of litter that needed to be removed. Today it's more maintenance than anything.

The work is meaningful to her. She first moved to nearby Concho in 1999 and the area is home. She also feels an obligation to help leave a positive and respectful impression on the environment. When Mendes started cleaning her segment, it was an event to help instill as similar desire in others. People would come out to clean and she even made it into a scavener hunt for the kids. If the children were too young to help alongside the highway, they would be somewhere safe making crafts. Those kids are all grown now, but Mendes keeps cleaning her segment. She feels an obligation to do it and said she wishes everyone had a similar attitude. The only real investment is the time it takes to do it, Mendes said.

Her main advice for others considering adopting a stretch of highway is to not look at it as drudgery, but as an adventure.

For example, someone on the way to the dump lost a dresser. Mendes came upon it, the drawers lying nearby. She went to pick those up and found a rattlesnake underneath one. Before then she would have never thought about a rattlesnake being there since it was so near the road. It never occurred to her. She exercises greater caution now. 

In her years of doing this, as she looks at those beer bottles, car parts, and broken furniture, it's almost educational. 

It's also given her a lot more empathy for the people whose items she cleans up. It is not about discarded trash, but a million other stories that could have happened, she said.

"There is a lot to be learned. Why do people throw items from their vehicle? What is the behavior that creates the issue?” Mendes said.

If you'd like to join Mendes in keeping our state looking its best, visit azdot.gov/adoptahighway to pick our your own stretch of highway. 

On a cool, November morning (by Arizona standards), a small group of scouts from Scottsdale gathered in a parking lot off State Route 87 in the Fountain Hills area. They wore yellow-and-orange vests, work gloves and face masks. 

The task for these Boy Scouts from Troop 616 in Scottsdale? Safely cleaning up trash on the side of the highway through ADOT’s volunteer Adopt a Highway program. 

“It’s pretty motivating,” said 15-year-old Pinnacle High School 10th grader Justin Hutchison, who worked to bend down his 6-foot-3-inch frame to pick up trash. “Especially with the pandemic going on it’s important we can get out and do projects, because that’s a big part of scouting.”

The Nov. 14 cleanup was part of the Boy Scouts’ Grand Canyon Council’s Day of Service. The troop covered between mile markers 190 and 192 on the Beeline Highway, a stretch that starts the gateway to the Mogollon Rim.

“We camp quite often as a troop in the Payson area at the two Boy Scout camps up there so we drive ... 87 quite a bit,” said Scoutmaster David Hutchison (yes, Justin’s father!), who shepherded the troop through the cleanup along with the other adult scout leaders.  

“We’re just trying to serve the community,” the scoutmaster added. “A lot of them think it’s really cool because they’ve never done it, but as scouts we try and instill in them the values of the Scout Law, and providing service and giving back to the community is a big part of that, so they’re all more than happy to do this.”

The troop spread out, socially distanced along the stretch in small groups, filling two dozen bags of trash by the end of the morning.  

You can be like Troop 616 and volunteer to Keep Arizona Grand. Adopt a Highway is limiting cleanups during the current public health situation to smaller groups, as recommended by the Arizona Department of Health Services and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If your organization is interested in participating in a cleanup and/or adopting a stretch of Arizona highway, visit the Adopt a Highway webpage. 

Scoutmaster Hutchison summed up the lessons of the day of service by saying, “They’ll leave today with a lot of pride in what they’ve accomplished.”

“I like the fact that we can help our city and our state and everything,” Scout Justin Hutchison said. “We’re big about helping the community.”

What do a grateful assistant fire management officer and the mother of a civic-minded 4-year-old boy have in common?

They both recently sent thank-you emails to Arizona Department of Transportation employees whose "above and beyond" efforts deserved extra recognition.

In an email, James Robbins, an assistant fire management officer with the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, thanked everyone at the Prescott Valley Equipment Shop. 

For nearly five years, Robbins said, the shop has swiftly repaired and consistently maintained the small fleet of heavily used firefighting vehicles he managed while in a former position. The shop is one of 21 such ADOT facilities across the state that provides vehicle services to more than 40 government agencies.

“Whether it is a fire crew carrier, heavy duty chipper, pickup truck or a fire engine, new or old and abused, your team has rallied to help us get back on the fire line as quickly as possible time and time again,” Robbins wrote. “Every one of your team members has acted in a professional manner and truly seems to do their best in helping us with our mission, and I want you to know that we truly appreciate it.” 

It’s not often that maintenance shop employees receive such accolades from someone who took the time to put together a note and send it, said Lionel McFarlane, ADOT maintenance operations manager.

“This was an unusually nice gesture,” McFarlane said.

In the next thank you story, Jack Eldridge, 4, was on his way to preschool with his mother when he spotted trash on Loop 101 Pima Freeway near the 64th Street off-ramp.

“We should stop and clean this up,” Jack said to his mom, Jennifer.

Jennifer said she thought it a good idea and decided to see if she could organize a cleanup with some of his preschool buddies and their families.

She reached out to Mary Currie, ADOT’s Adopt a Highway communications programs manager, and asked if they could clean that stretch of L-101.  

“This is my 4-year old’s idea and I want to try and see it through,” Jennifer wrote.

Currie researched the issue thoroughly with several other ADOT employees. The finding was that particular segment, located in the busy urban Phoenix area, is unsafe for volunteer activity. In fact, the area is part of the Adopt a Highway Sponsor Program, but clean-up activity is on hold as maintenance crews continue the ongoing widening project in that area.

What’s more is that volunteers have to be at least 12 years old and have a parent sign a participation form to participate in the volunteer program. 

So while the answer was “no,” it was the way Currie said it that meant so much to Jennifer. That and the fact that her correspondence resulted in a speedy cleanup of the area. 

“She (Currie) took the time to call and say how much she appreciated my child’s interest and talked about other ways our family could get involved,” Jennifer said. “She sent us about 12 lapel pins that say 'Keep it Grand,' pencils and 'Stormwater in the Desert' activity books.”  

Jack cherishes the items and carries them around in his backpack, she said.

“Thank you so much for your letter and the materials you sent to us! We are thrilled!,” Jennifer wrote. “I will look into the Adopt a Highway program for my husband and I to get involved with (and for Jack too when he’s age-appropriate). By the way, I noticed a week or so ago that the exit at 64th Street and the 101 is CLEAN (at least for now). Jack noticed too! So, thank you so much!”

But even better, he and his mother shared the materials with his preschool class, and his teacher used them for a unit about sustainability and pollution and urged them to pick up their own trash.

“Mary went above and beyond!” Jennifer said. “I really appreciate the work you do.”

For her part, Currie shared credit with the other ADOT employees who helped create this story.

“For this family and a classroom of 4-year-olds, you’ve set in motion a belief that being civic-minded can make a difference in the community,” Currie told her fellow employees in an email. She also sent them the thank you from Jack, Jennifer, and Jennifer's husband, Ashton.

Jack and other kids can click on the ADOT Kids link to learn more about transportation and have some fun while learning too. If you would like to learn more about adopting a segment of highway with your family or friends, visit the site for the Adopt a Highway Volunteer Program.

This year marks the third in a “call to action” for Adopt a Highway group participation on National CleanUp Day. 

More than 60 volunteer groups and hundreds of volunteers in 13 Arizona counties displayed community pride by caring for their adopted segments. 

This year ADOT offered one-day permits to interested participants. A few have already decided they want to move forward with adopting a stretch of highway for future cleanups! Those volunteers will receive a group recognition sign at their designated area. We want to thank all volunteer groups and individual participants who came out to remove litter this year.  

Litter reports are beginning to roll in with only 15% of groups reporting 200 bags of litter collected. Last year 100% reported 196 bags collected statewide, so this is just the beginning of a huge win for Arizona and our beautiful communities.

This year, the Adopt a Highway event registration portal launched for the first time, capturing four times the number of groups participating in 2019. 

Registered groups that complete the activity report to let us know the number of litter bags filled and other volunteer data, will receive an electronic certificate of appreciation created for this event. 

A special thank you to the many volunteers who welcomed our onsite visits during our 392-mile journey on Saturday.  Here’s what a few group leaders had to say about their volunteer experience:

“What a great way to contribute to our community and keep Arizona clean and grand — and we’re having a blast.” - Yvonne McLemore, first-time participant and one-day permit turned permanent adoption. 

I asked Rick Winfrey, a one-day volunteer, on State Route 79 , what the significance was for cleaning up this portion of the highway. He told me that he has been a frequent traveler of this road over the last 20 years: “It’s very pristine out here. I love the saguaros and the raw desert. It was time to take a leap and adopt a mile.” 

Rick also moved forward with a permanent highway adoption across from the Tom Mix Memorial and near the Town of Florence. The volunteer group sign is a memorial to beloved family members, two labrador retrievers. “Forever in our hearts, Opie & Maggie Winfrey.”

National CleanUp Day is celebrated annually in the United States on the third Saturday of September. It promotes both organized and individual cleanup events and volunteering to keep the outdoors clean.

Erica Barron is a group leader representing an adopted segment on SR 79 near Oracle. She says, “Arizona is such a beautiful state. I think it is awe inspiring and keeping our state clean and beautiful is all of our responsibilities. It makes me feel great that I can be a part of the beauty of Arizona.”

Pat Barron said, “I believe keeping Arizona clean helps to preserve the natural beauty of Arizona, and that’s what I’m about.” Pat expanded on some of the treasures found along the highway during their cleanups and challenged others to “come on out and join us!” 

Gene Van Dyken, group leader for Green Valley Litter Patrol south of Tucson said, “It’s a feel-good thing, definitely. If we don’t proactively go out there and pick it up, it’s not going to get done.” Gene leads a robust team of more than 30 volunteers. Their volunteer group removed a whopping 93 bags of litter on Saturday and the days leading up to National CleanUp Day. The Green Valley Litter Patrol is pictured in the photo above right. 

Stay tuned to for updated event information and more volunteer stories on the ADOT Blog. And learn more about a few fantastic partners in this cleanup effort - Don’t Trash Arizona and My Beautiful PHX.  If you would like to learn more about adopting your own stretch of highway please visit the Adopt a Highway website or email us.

Did you know that today, September 19, is National CleanUp Day? 

That's right, today is the day when everyone is encouraged to help keep our outdoors looking great by picking up litter.

Last year on National CleanUp Day, 1.3 tons of litter was removed from along Arizona’s highways. That’s huge! You can help by picking up trash in your own neighborhood. Be sure to be safe, watch for cars and bikes, and wash your hands when you are done! Challenge your friends to see who can pick up the most trash from your neighborhood!

For those too young to join in, but still want to show their support for keeping Arizona, we have a Adopt-a-Highway-themed ADOT Kids word search and scramble! Download your own copy by clicking on the activity sheets below.

If you are able to get out there and help today, please share your experience with us! Use the hashtag #NationalCleanUpDay and tag your photos with @ArizonaDOT on social media or email your photos to us: [email protected].

The Adopt a Highway Volunteer Program is an important program for Arizona. Over 1,100  groups volunteer to pick up litter from along the state highways each year. Permits are needed to participate on an annual basis, and one-time pick-up permits are also available. Anyone 12 and older can participate.If you live in Maricopa County, learn more about reducing litter from Don’t Trash Arizona! If you would like to help reduce trash in your neighborhood, please visit My Beautiful Phoenix hosted by Keep Phoenix Beautiful.

Arizona, Keep It Grand!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We’ve added something new for all our Adopt a Highway volunteers participating in National CleanUp Day. We’ve created a Facebook frame for you to add to your Facebook profile image! 

We encourage you to add it to your profile image on Sept. 19 to show others you’re helping to Keep Arizona Grand. View our Facebook frame. 

Need help figuring out how to add the image to your Facebook profile image? Here’s what to do.

To add a frame to your profile picture on a desktop computer:

1. Go to facebook.com/profilepicframes.
2. Search “Adopt a Highway.” 
3. Click “Use as Profile Picture” to save it.

To add a frame to your profile picture on a mobile device:

1. Go to your Facebook app and tap on your profile picture.
2. A menu will pop up, tap “Add Frame.”
3. Search “Adopt a Highway.” 
4. Tap on the Adopt a Highway frame and then click “Save.”

Please use the hashtag #NationalCleanUpDay and tag your photos with @ArizonaDOT on social media or email them to us. 

At this time we are asking all volunteers to respect guidelines for social distancing and follow all regulations of the jurisdiction where your cleanup is taking place. Keep groups to fewer than 10 people as recommended by the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Wash your hands, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface. Avoid touching your face. 

This was a name that got us all wondering: Sasquatch.

Sasquatch? Isn’t that another name for Bigfoot, the mythical hairy man-like ape creature said to exist in the Pacific Northwest?

So when we heard that a highway mile had been named in reference to Bigfoot, we had to learn more.

To start with, yes, we have a mile of US 60 named Sasquatch! It’s east of Show Low from milepost 347 to 348. Linda Philbrook and friends clean it twice a year as part of ADOT’s Adopt a Highway program.

The official sign reads “Sasquatch Marc Philbrook, we love you.” The stretch is named after Linda’s husband, Marc Philbrook, who passed away in 2011.

“He looked like Sasquatch,” Linda said. “He was a great big guy with a great big beard and big head of hair.”

That's him in the photo to the right, so you can judge the resemblance for yourself.

The origin of nickname stretches back years, coming from a visit he made to White Mountain Radio, where Linda works. Marc walked in, and one of Linda’s colleagues took one look before saying, “Sasquatch.”

The name stuck. The family even owned a business for a while called “Sasquatch Mobile Auto.”  

Linda and her two children live in Vernon, about 10 miles away from Marc's sign. Originally from southern California, the family of four relocated to Arizona in 2003 after Marc fell in love with the Show Low area.

Linda said she got the idea to adopt a mile in her husband’s honor because she noticed the Adopt a Highway signs on her travels.

“I decided, let’s see what’s available. I knew the mile I wanted. I wanted the sign at the top of the hill on US 60 at milepost 348. The view is unbelievable,” she said. "It’s a really gorgeous part of US 60. It’s got really pretty mountain purple flowers. I know he’d love it.”

The Philbrooks aside, we in ADOT’s Communications Office may or may not be believers in the cryptid's existence, after having our own Sasquatch "encounter." That led to this headline-making photo we posted on Facebook in 2015.

Captured by one of our rural cameras, the image depicted a wintry scene with snow on the highway shoulder – along with some unusual blurry black shapes, as is traditional for all Bigfoot photos. So we asked “We might have spotted a family of Sasquatches on SR 260 near Heber this afternoon. What do you think?”

The post spread like wildfire and became a social media sensation. It was shared more than 4,800 times and generated nearly 2,000 comments. You can read more about it in a blog post we made at the time.

As for Linda, she and a core group of friends, the "Sasquatch Seven," honor Mark's memory by regularly cleaning his mile. In between times, Linda likes to dress up her sign seasonally. Come Halloween, you might see ghosts and monsters on it, for St. Patrick's day, green leprechauns and such, and so on for Christmas and the other holidays.

"I decorate it and take care of it," Linda said. "Everyone who drives by tells me they love it!"

To learn more about the Adopt a Highway program, please click here.

Register now! We welcome you to participate in the Adopt a Highway Volunteer Program statewide cleanup during National Cleanup Day on Saturday, Sept. 19. 

One-day permits will be granted across the state of Arizona on a first-come, first-served basis. We will do our best to find an adoptable highway segment near your desired location. Adopt a Highway Volunteer groups – this counts toward your annual cleanup requirement!

This year promises to be even a bigger success with your participation! Last year about 100 Adopt a Highway volunteers came out around the state to clean up adopted highway segments resulting in 1.3 tons of litter removed from along Arizona's highways.

Remember, all program volunteer groups and one-day permit groups must report litter bag totals to us within three days after the event. ADOT tracks litter data each year to share the accomplishments of 9,100 Adopt a Highway volunteers.  

At this time we are asking all volunteers to respect guidelines for social distancing and follow all regulations of the jurisdiction where your cleanup is taking place. Keep groups to fewer than 10 people as recommended by the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Wash your hands, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface. Avoid touching your face. 

The Adopt a Highway team plans to visit as many volunteer groups around the state as logistics allow.  We will contact you prior to National Cleanup Day if your clean up segment is along our route!

We'd love to see and share your National Cleanup Day photos on social media. Please use the hashtag #NationalCleanUpDay and tag your photos with @ArizonaDOT. 

Thank you for considering ADOT for your National Cleanup Day participation as an opportunity to unite and reduce litter along our highways. If you would like more information about the program visit Adopt a Highway 

Arizona, Keep It Grand!

Welcome, volunteers! Whether you are an existing Adopt a Highway volunteer group or a collection of civic-minded folks wanting to participate with a one-day volunteer permit, we hope you’ll join us for National CleanUp Day!

National CleanUp Day is Saturday, Sept. 19. Only weeks away, this day is set aside for individuals and organizations to unite for the purpose of reducing litter in their communities.

Online registration is new this year! Adopt a Highway volunteer groups and other groups requesting a one-day permit will have the opportunity to register for the cleanup. A link to the registration form is coming soon. All groups are required to report litter totals within three days of the event. Last year, about 100 Adopt a Highway volunteer groups came out around the state to clean up their adopted highway segments. Thier combined effort collected more than 1.3 tons of litter from state highways.

At this time we are asking all volunteers to respect guidelines for social distancing and follow all regulations of the jurisdiction where your cleanup is taking place. Keep groups fewer than 10 people as recommended by the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Wash your hands, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface. Avoid touching your face. 

The Adopt a Highway team plans to visit as many volunteer groups around the state as logistics allow. If your cleanup is along our route, you will receive advanced notification prior to National CleanUp Day.

We'd love to see and share your National CleanUp Day group photos on social media. Please use the hashtag #NationalCleanUpDay and tag your photos with @ArizonaDOT. Send us your group photos and include your sign in the background for possible use in an upcoming ADOT blog.

Thank you for considering National CleanUp Day on Saturday, Sept. 19 as an opportunity to help reduce litter along our highways.

Arizona, Keep It Grand!