The actions of one dedicated citizen has led to a community-driven craze to keep the greater Cornwall area clean. Two years after its creation, the Cornwall Cleanup Crew continues to expand and take on new ventures while consistently ridding the town and village of waste.

In 2022, Bob Rogan, a West Point Tours bus driver and Cornwall resident, began cleaning up the garbage folks tossed out of their vehicles. After two months, he realized the effort was too big a job for one person to handle. He wrote a letter to the editor asking for volunteers and the public responded.
The rest is history.

Depending on the time of year, between 15 and 30 volunteers gather in front of CVS at 10 a.m. every Sunday to target a specific area which has become inundated with litter. President and volunteer Tracy Andrews said there’s no regular rotation when it comes to deciding from which roadway to pick up litter.

The Cleanup Crew’s mission is simple: to remove trash and illegally dumped waste from public roadsides in and around Cornwall and work with partners to keep the Hudson Valley region beautiful.

Since its inception, the volunteer group has become a 501(c)3 non-profit and formed an 11-person executive board which meets once a month at the Cornwall Public Library. Meetings begin at 5:30 and then open to the public from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. They have been held on the second Tuesday, but will soon be switched to the first Tuesday so members can attend the Town Board meetings.

The Cornwall Cleanup Crew has partnered with the Cornwall Central School District to provide high school students with the opportunity to fulfill their community service hours. With the help of junior Heather Ferguson, the goal is to reach out to middle and elementary school students and conduct programs teaching them about why trash is bad and what they can do as good stewards to the environment.

Andrews said one of the biggest goals, however, is to get other communities involved and help them form their own groups.

“The Cornwall Clean-up crew is the founding chapter of the Hudson Valley Cleanup Crew,” Andrews said. “We need people who are just as passionate about us keeping our town clean as we are.”

A future goal is to remove tires from the ravine along Rt. 218 heading toward West Point. If permission is granted, the hope is to involve community members from Cornwall, Cornwall-on-Hudson, and Highland Falls.

While taking on these projects, the volunteers are actively raising money to purchase a new shed. Permission has already been granted to place it between Munger Cottage and the Buildings and Grounds garage. Individuals can purchase one-year sponsorships to help in this effort, as well as raise money for safety equipment, and liability insurance. More information can be found by visiting the Cornwall Cleanup Crew Facebook page or emailing cornwallcleanupcrew@gmail.com.

Besides its normal Sunday cleanup, the volunteers will be participating in a number of community events this year: from 3 to 5 p.m. on April 22 at Black Rock Forest; April 26 at the Hudson Highlands Nature Center; the Hudson River Sweep on May 3; Dragon Day from 9 a.m. to noon on May 18; the car show on May 24; RiverFest on June 1; Recycling Day from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on June 14; the Fall Festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 21; and Small Business Saturday on Nov. 29.