Just an hour outside Detroit, in the city of Port Huron, Michigan, one resident is making waves with an unusual act of community service. Dressed as a clown, she hits the streets with trash bags and a shopping cart she calls “Carter,” cleaning up the city while also trying to shift people’s perspectives. What she’s doing has caught the attention of her entire city. Hundreds of people have turned out to help her pick up the trash by participating in cleanup events that she holds on Saturdays.
Outside of the clown outfit, “Trash the Clown,” a stay-at-home mom of two kids who has been with her partner since high school, is just a normal neighbor. She noticed garbage piling up around her town and decided to do something about it.
Instead of blending in, she chose to stand out by dressing as a clown while collecting litter. When asked how she came up with the idea, the 33-year-old mom explained that her goal was to create a character that would make people feel uncomfortable at first, since clowns tend to be divisive.
By changing how people feel about clowns, she believed she could also shift their perspectives on other things. Her mission goes beyond just addressing litter; it’s about changing how people view the world and each other, she said.
“We go through our days without really seeing the world around us without really engaging one another,” she added. “So if we can learn to like, actually engage the world, see it, then we start to see the litter on the ground. Then we can see how, you know, we’re hateful to one another, and how we can fill in those gaps with kindness and with love.”
Dolly Becker, a viewer who grew up in Port Huron, first brought “Trash the Clown” to the attention of “CBS Mornings.” Becker said she’d seen posts online about a clown walking around with a shopping cart picking up trash. Many people assumed the person was homeless or mentally ill. But Becker decided to reach out to her directly, and the two became friends.
“I think every town needs somebody, you know, to advocate, to clean things up. Take pride in your town,” Becker said.
Trash the Clown’s unusual method has made her the talk of Port Huron. Initially, people mocked her but now the community sees the value in her work. Hundreds of her neighbors have even joined in to help clean up the town.
“It’s it’s a simple shtick, you know. Yeah. I just go around and pick up trash when I see it. The world is really noisy, so it’s hard to hear good messages sometimes. And so to kind of cut through all that negative noise, sometimes you have to speak loud but loud in a different way,” said the stay-at-home mom.
Several community members have applauded her recent efforts, with one resident writing on Facebook: “We love our Trash the Clown so much!! She is a glorious human who has done more to unite this town than words can describe. Group cleanups, art & music gatherings, and using some of her dumpster treasures to create beautiful art pieces.”
Despite the attention, “Trash the Clown” prefers to stay in character and keep the focus on her mission.
“I don’t want it to be about me,” she said. “I want people to see the world as we’re in it together. We’re a community, and we can get stuff done to together. It’s not about just one person or a clown.”
David Begnaud loves uncovering the heart of every story and will continue to do so, highlighting everyday heroes and proving that there is good news in the news with his exclusive “CBS Mornings” series “Beg-Knows America.” Every Monday, get ready for moments that will make you smile or even shed a tear. Do you have a story about an ordinary person doing something extraordinary for someone else? Email David and his team at DearDavid@cbsnews.com
