SEATTLE — Pilot Joe Leatherman typically has a bird's-eye-view of the world as he spends a lot of time flying for SkyWest Airlines. But this year he decided to focus his attention on the ground after a friend inspired him to start picking up trash.
"Anywhere I’d go, I'd take a garbage bag with me," Leatherman said.
In between flying commercial airplanes, Leatherman spends his layovers looking for litter. But one day he decided to see if anyone else would like to join him.
"A couple of other pilots that fly for the same airline replied back to me and said, 'Hey we do the same thing,'" Leatherman said.
They formed a Facebook group called "Eco-Crews," which has since expanded beyond flight crews to anyone who wants to join the cleanups.
Leatherman now does cleanups every day. Just as there never seems to be an end to the trash, there is also no end to the new teammates that join their effort.
"It's been great," Leatherman said. "The variety of people from over the years I've met have come together on a single day and put forth an amazing effort."
They met Tuesday morning at Alki Beach in Seattle to pick up trash left over from Memorial Day weekend.
The group now has nearly 400 members and includes people from all over the country.
Perhaps viewing the earth from the sky changes the way you see it, focusing on the big picture and inspiring effort that's never too small.
"It has been just a tremendous light in my life and I'm really glad to have brought things to light for you guys as well," Leatherman told his team.