PRESS RELEASE – August 2, 2021  

We Heart Seattle hosted another weekend clean-up on Sunday at the NE Queen Anne Greenbelt trail. More than 40 volunteers continued the painstaking work of reclaiming this once lush area from years of illegal dumping and neglect. Clocking in 1,000+ labor hours to date at this site alone, We Heart Seattle collected an additional 6,800 pounds of trash (bringing the total at this site to more than 40,000 pounds) along with some 1,000+ needles. See the fruits of We Heart Seattle’s hard work here.

We Heart Seattle founder and Executive Director Andrea Suarez commented “We are all compassionate members of the community with a bias for action. We plan to keep showing up in parks and public spaces across the city to make a difference.”  Indeed, over this past weekend, We Heart Seattle volunteers were also hard at work picking litter at Green Lake and removing graffiti at the Lake City Mini-Park.

We Heart Seattle welcomes collaboration with anyone and everyone in their effort to make Seattle beautiful and safe for all. To date, the group has organized more than 80 clean-up events across the city and is adding more to their calendar weekly.  

Andrea Suarez, Executive Director, We Heart Seattle 
andrea@weheartseattle.org

Website: www.WeHeartSeattle.org 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle 

WHS Events: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle/events

We Heart Seattle was back at work this weekend clearing thousands more pounds of trash and needles from the NE Queen Anne Greenbelt trail.  Over the past few weeks, this all-volunteer group has cleared more than 35,000 pounds of trash from this site alone, a fraction of which you can see here.   

We Heart Seattle is actively seeking help from City stakeholders to support citizen-led clean-up efforts and is powered by the civic engagement their clean-up events are encouraging.  We Heart Seattle founder and Executive Director Andrea Suarez commented “We are all just compassionate members of the community with a bias for action. We plan to keep showing up in parks like MacLean and the Greenbelt, making a difference.”  

Through their tireless boots on the ground presence in this area, We Heart Seattle established relationships with two individuals who had been living in the Greenbelt – both of whom were recently connected with low-income housing.  

We Heart Seattle welcomes collaboration with anyone and everyone in their effort to make Seattle beautiful and safe for all. To date, the group has organized more than 80 clean-up events across the city and is adding more to their calendar weekly.  

Andrea Suarez, Executive Director, We Heart Seattle 
andrea@weheartseattle.org

Website: www.WeHeartSeattle.org 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle 

WHS Events: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle/events

PRESS RELEASE – July 19, 2021 

We Heart Seattle, a volunteer grassroots organization dedicated to making Seattle beautiful and safe for all, was back in action this weekend. Starting at the historic MacLean Park trailhead, some 30 volunteers fanned out down the NE Queen Anne Greenbelt trail all the way to Aurora Ave N.  This latest effort comes after numerous clean-ups in recent weeks, bringing the total debris removed from this site to almost 30,000 pounds, a fraction of which you can see piled here for pick-up.

Local business owners and residents have long pressed the City to take action against the illegal dumping, open drug use, and unsafe conditions in this area. While coordinated action by City stakeholders to restore this once-green oasis would be welcome, We Heart Seattle is galvanized by the civic engagement their clean-up events are encouraging.  We Heart Seattle founder and Executive Director Andrea Suarez commented “This is a tricky site because of the steep terrain and sheer volume of debris but we are truly reclaiming the green space and working to provide safe trails for our community.”

Through their tireless boots on the ground presence in this area, We Heart Seattle also established relationships with the only two individuals living full time in the Greenbelt – both of whom were connected with low-income housing last week.

We Heart Seattle welcomes collaboration with anyone and everyone in their effort to make Seattle beautiful and safe for all. To date, the group has organized more than 80 clean-up events across the city and is adding more to their calendar weekly. 

 

Andrea Suarez, Executive Director, We Heart Seattle 
andrea@weheartseattle.org

Website: www.WeHeartSeattle.org 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle 

WHS Events: www.facebook.com/groups/weheartseattle/events