Armed with a shovel and a smartphone app, hundreds of young people fanned out across Baltimore, Maryland in the wake of last weekend’s winter storm, to shovel sidewalks for the elderly and disabled.
About 345 teens are benefitting from the City Youth Snow Program, clearing snow for roughly 1,000 people who can’t manage it themselves. They earn $10 an hour and can make up to $750 over the course of the winter.
CLEAR A PATH TO GOOD NEWS WITH OUR APP—> Download FREE for Android and iOS
The program uses a phone app to connect the teens with shoveling jobs within a few blocks of their homes. The shovel crews take before and after pictures of the sidewalk and submit them on the app to show the work was done.
Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced the Youth Snow Program last summer asking teens to hit the streets whenever Baltimore gets five inches or more of snow.
WATCH: Disabled Veteran Converts Wheelchair into Snow Plow to Help Town
Their first job came on Sunday, when the city saw its largest single-day snowfall ever — topping 27 inches and creating plenty of work for the Baltimore youth who signed up before November.
“Yesterday my back was killing me. My back and my legs. But that was it. I’m good,” 17-year-old Aiesha Johnson told the Baltimore Sun. “I like it. It helps more people out.”
Residents who would like to register can call 443-263-2220.
Photo: Steve Soblick, CC
Dig This Story Out For Your Friends, Share It…