Most Spring Breakers aren't thinking of anything else but relaxing and having a good time, but one Georgia teen decided to use his break to make the world a better place.
Joshua Caraway, 19, was in Miami with friends for spring break when he decided to use his day at the beach to clean up garbage. He was walking the beach collecting trash when he was noticed by Joel Franco of WSVN-TV.
Franco watched Caraway fill at least 3 bags of garbage on the crowded beach on Saturday afternoon.
Joshua told Franco:
"We need to keep the beach clean. Even though I'm on vacation, I still can help out."
He said he was in Miami with friends, but he couldn't convince them to help him with his mission to make the beach a cleaner place:
"I asked my friends if they were going to do it with me, and they were like, 'Clean up the trash? No, I'm not with that,'"
Miami Beach Police Department's Major Paul Acosta noticed Joshua's efforts on Saturday too, and went to congratulate the teen on his work ethic:
"He said thank you and wanted to take me to the police station to give me a certificate or something, but I had to leave the next morning."
Acosta also took to Twitter to spread word of Joshua's work:
"So I told Joshua, you've been picking up trash for a long time instead of hanging out and listening to music."
"I asked why. He says, he loves animals and wants to take care of their home and ours."
A short while later, another group arrived to clean up the beach too.
News of Joshua's efforts has spread far and wide thanks to social media. One of Joshua's role models, @Therealtarxann (animal expert, Mike Holston), shared one of the photos of him on the beach.
Caraway said that he wants to become an animal specialist after high school, and Holston has been a real inspiration for him.
Others were congratulating Joshua on Twitter as well.
Miami residents were especially thankful, with many telling Joshua he was welcome back any time.
Between the efforts of individuals like Joshua and movements like #trashtag, people are really trying to make a change in the amount of garbage littering our public spaces. If we can all do our part, we can make a difference.
