The Blue Glove Crew (BGC) is a group of people who walk on Solano and San Pablo Avenues picking up trash three days a week. They walk in all weather and most holidays, and have been helping our commercial streets stay clean for more than 10 years. Initially funded solely by the Solano Avenue Association, the SAA was given a generous donation to support the BGC by Albany Subaru in 2021. Money from these sources pays for the blue gloves, periodic get-togethers, and the BGC shirts and hats worn while walking.
The Crew is a friendly bunch and is always open to new members. Anyone who would like to join them is welcome to meet at the corner of Solano and Masonic (near the BART tracks) in front of Abrams Claghorn Gallery any Monday, Wednesday or Friday, at 7:50am. Walks start around 7:55, last about two hours, and are usually done between 9:40 and 10:00am. There are walkers of all speeds and a range of ages (they’ve got several retirees and have had a number of High School students walk over the years). It’s also fine if someone only wants to do part of the walk and take off for other commitments.
To connect, feel free to email us at blueglovecrew@gmail.com.
The BGC is also on Facebook and Instagram.
The BGC Route
The route begins on the North West corner of Solano and Masonic. The group immediately crosses the street and walks West on Solano to San Pablo. They turn left on San Pablo and South to Harrison (where McDonald’s is), then cross and continue North to Carlson (where Peet’s is) then back across San Pablo to continue South to Solano. They then walk East on Solano to the Alameda, where they cross and return West to Solano and Evelyn where they remove their gloves and the walk is over. The route is just over five miles, and includes the moderate climb up Solano toward the Alameda. This is often the most challenging part of the walk, especially on a sunny day. For those who prefer landmarks, West is towards the Bay, East is towards the hills.
History of the Blue Glove Crew
The seeds of the BGC were planted in 2010 when SAA Executive Director Allen Cain began walking for exercise after dropping off his daughter at Cornell School. It wasn’t long before he saw some trash, so picked it up. Having picked up that trash, he began picking up all the trash he saw. To increase the workout, he began walking the avenue twice, once picking up trash, and then a second time purely for exercise. Allen raised eyebrows as the “crazy-guy” who fast-walked the Avenue wearing all black except for white iPod earbuds and a blue glove on one hand. Allen walked five days a week. A few people joined him over those first few years, but none joined him very regularly or for long.
Allen’s friend and Chamber of Commerce Board Member Tod Abbott joined him walking in early 2012, and that’s when the Blue Glove Crew began to grow. Self-employed and with pre-teens at home, Tod could only walk three days a week. Allen liked that idea, and that’s when the Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule began. Initially calling themselves the Blue Glove Two, they walked together for a year or so and then were joined by Tod’s wife Karen Nierlich, and Tod’s friend and Boy Scout Colleague Peter Shakow. These four are still with the crew, forming the core of the core group.
The group continued walking two laps around Solano for many years, but then went down to one lap that includes San Pablo Avenue in January 2018.
FAQ:
Is there anything special about the blue gloves, and why only one?
Being “detail oriented,” Allen Cain researched gloves when he realized handling garbage was going to be a regular thing on his walks. He found the gloves that the CDC uses when working in the field, and that’s what the BGC continues to use. The Crew has tried other gloves over the years, but these are the only gloves that reliably protect against wet and sticky garbage and can be counted on not to break during the walk. Being the Executive Director of the Solano Avenue Association, Allen needed to keep one hand clean to shake hands as he ran into business owners on his route. Thus one glove. It is also handy to have a clean hand when one needs to handle something other than trash (such as a phone, a hat, etc.).
How Many People are on the Blue Glove Crew?
This varies a lot week to week. Like any organization the BGC gains and loses members for various reasons. They mostly “lose” people when their schedule changes due to work or family responsibilities. A couple of times a year there will be a single BGC member out walking the route, and the most they’ve had was 16. The biggest day is the Monday after the Solano Avenue Stroll when they will be joined by some walkers who only walk that day. Most days they’re a group of 6 to 10. There have been a few canine members over the years, though they are notoriously poor at picking up trash. Tod’s dog Trillian has been the most regular member, though she has entered light retirement as she has gotten older and now only walks a few times a month.
How do they stay together with such a range of ages and walking speeds?
In general, the faster walkers are slowed down because there is more garbage to pick up in the front, so the group generally stays in range (if not quite together). The folks in front will also usually wait for the whole group to catch up at key intersections. All in all it works pretty well.
What’s the strangest thing they have found on the walk?
That’s hard to say. They find car parts, lots of vape pens, flashlights, tools, water bottles, ear buds, airtags, and a lot more. During the Pandemic they found hundreds of face masks (which they are still finding as this is written in late 2023). They’ve found a surreal and creepy face mask, creepy stuffed animals, the metal scabbard of a sword, journals and photographs. They’ve found a number of wallets and purses (which are generally dropped off at the Albany Police Station), ID and credit cards (which they do their best to get back to their owners), phones and other electronic devices, and really just examples of all of modern life. One of the BGC sayings is “the street provides.” On more than one occasion a crew member has forgotten or needed something, and it appears on the avenue to be picked up. The clearest example of this was when Tod forgot treats for his dog Trillian — who is very insistent that she receive treats at the expected times — and then found half a box of dog biscuits on San Pablo Avenue. The street provides indeed.
What do they do with money they find on the walk?
The group has done different things with the money they’ve found over the years. Initially they used it for Blue Glove get-togethers. But with support for those events from the SAA and later Albany Subaru, they’ve collected that money and given it to some of the people experiencing homelessness they’ve gotten to know on the walks, usually around the holidays.
Early on when Allen was walking alone, he once found an envelope full of small bills with a name written on it. Following a hunch, he dropped by Marin School to see if a teacher had lost an envelope of money. Indeed a teacher had lost their class party money, and they were very happy to have it returned.
Why do they walk to Evelyn to end the walk rather than just stopping at Masonic?
This is a common question of new walkers with the crew. The answer is really quite simple. When the BGC began, there was no garbage can at the corner of Solano and Masonic. They walked down to Evelyn to take off their gloves and conclude the walk. That just became the way it is done.
Has the Blue Glove Crew received any sort of recognition?
The BGC was featured in a radio interview around 2011, an article in Berkeleyside in 2015 and received citations from the City of Albany in June, 2019. They were invited to present at a Thousand Oaks Neighborhood Association event in May 2019.
The Crew also enjoys friendly waves, honks, and “thank yous” every day they walk.