Sedlak family organizes more than quarter century of cleanup days in Monroeville

Joe Sedlak is happy to be part of more than a quarter century of organizing a community cleanup day in memory of his father, former Monroeville Councilman Jack Sedlak.

And as far as he’s concerned, this year’s clean-up day on April 30 can’t come soon enough.

“This is probably as bad as I’ve seen it along the roads around here,” said Sedlak, Monroeville’s human resources director.

His group cleans the same area every year, along Monroeville Boulevard near the municipal building and down to Route 22.

“But this year, all of a sudden, it’s like we never did it,” Sedlak said. “I don’t know if it’s the pandemic, if more people are getting out now, but it’s bad. There’s a lot of cleanup.”

Sedlak’s father had already been instrumental in getting the cleanup day organized when he died of cancer in 1995.

“Since then, it’s continued to grow into a really big event,” Sedlak said. “We get 400 to 500 people every year.”

In 2021, the day’s haul included 1,000 bags of litter, 40 tires and seven televisions.

Like Sedlak’s, many of the volunteer groups clean the same stretch of road regularly. Having residents sign up to clean streets they see every day also helps provide a sense of ownership and pride in their community, he added.

“My brother has been doing Old William Penn Highway for years,” he said. “We have a husband and wife who always do the same street.”

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation provides bags, gloves and safety vests for similar cleanups throughout the state. In Monroeville, volunteers also receive a T-shirt every year, which Sedlak said usually helps accentuate the vest.

“This year’s shirt color, I think, is called ‘Lime Shock,’” he said with a laugh.

The 27th annual Jack Sedlak Community Clean-Up runs from 9-11 a.m., April 30 throughout Monroeville.

Volunteers can sign up through the Monroeville Recreation and Parks website, Monroeville.pa.us/parks-and-recreation, by calling the department at 412-856-1006, or by using a smart phone to scan the QR code on fliers posted throughout the community.