Two jobs. One shoreline.

The weekday crew comes from The Lord’s Place job-ready program and from Vita Nova. The Lord’s Place has been changing the lives of families and individuals in Palm Beach County for decades. Vita Nova helps young people leaving foster care with housing, counseling, and a path to independence.

Together they walk about 7.5 miles of Palm Beach, the easternmost point in Florida, and take plastic and other debris off the sand before it breaks down in the water. About 85–90 percent of what comes up in the buckets is plastic.

Keep Palm Beach County Beautiful, the Solid Waste Authority’s Adopt-A-Spot program, and a truck leased with help from Earl Stewart keep that route moving. Students at Surface 71 have turned debris from these cleanups into public work, including Harry the Hammerhead at Loggerhead Marinelife Center.