74-Year-Old's Highway Cleanup Crusade

0:00Meet Mark Silliman, a 74-year-old from Commerce, Washington, who's been decades battling roadside trash. Every couple weeks, he hits a 600-foot stretch of State Highway 14 between 164th and 1.92. Avinus, filling five to eight bags with construction junk, household waste, and booze bottles. This habit kicked off 50 years ago near Sacramento when young Mark would haul mattresses onto his Volkswagen's roof on the way to church. His dad drilled it into him, leave any place better than you found it. Now adopted through the state's adopt a highway program since 2019, Silliman says is just basic courtesy to the planet. These days, he teams up with the East County Citizens Alliance, a washable non-profit that started group clean-ups in 2022. Solo runs fell apocalyptic amid the litter, but the crew makes it hit different. More bags cleared, stronger community vibes. Silliman's no stranger to hands-on work. He built a career in construction, ran a home inspection biz in school, even crafted

1:03dog collars before. Retiring. His artist wife paints for McMinneman spots nearby, and he turns deer bones from clean-up sites into knife handles. Frustration lingers seeing the same trash pile up without bigger help, but the groups got him locked in with new friends and purpose. He'll keep at it till next year, when they jet to Italy, proving one person's grind can spark real change along the highway. Stay informed with Vancouver News today, AI-powered updates. I'm Corey with The Story.