What began as a simple idea between two friends at a coffee shop has grown into one of Kitsap County’s community cleanup efforts.

Every third Saturday, volunteers with Keeping Kitsap Clean gather under the Warren Avenue Bridge to pick up trash as part of the Kitsap County Adopt-A-Spot program.

The group — co-sponsored by Caffe Perfetto, Dream Legacy Real Estate, and Lone Star Donuts — has become a steady presence in Bremerton.

“We just wanted to do something for the community,” said Bryan Stephenson, owner of Caffe Perfetto and one of the initiative’s founders. “I’d been thinking about starting a trash pickup because I do a lot of running around Bremerton and kept seeing litter. It’s totally preventable.”

Stephenson started the effort with Amanda Taylor, a local realtor, and later teamed up with Omar Gomez, owner of Lone Star Donuts.

Their events routinely draw between 20 and 35 volunteers, with participants ranging from young children to retirees. During their most recent cleanup Oct. 18, more than 30 volunteers joined in, collecting over 30 bags of litter and several hundred pounds of debris from the Warren Avenue corridor.

“We’ve never not had an event, and we’ve never not had people show up,” Stephenson said.

Each cleanup begins at 8:30 a.m. outside Caffe Perfetto, where volunteers sign in, get fitted for gloves and vests provided by Kitsap County, and receive safety briefings. Afterward, participants are treated to a free drink from the coffee shop and donuts from Lone Star Donuts as a thank-you for their time.

Stephenson said the group tracks its progress by the number of bags collected. On average, volunteers pick up about 27 to 30 bags of trash each month, and Keeping Kitsap Clean has been recognized by the county for having one of the largest and most consistent Adopt-A-Spot efforts.

The group also received the Golden Picker Award last year for its outstanding volunteer contributions, logging hundreds of volunteer hours and miles of roadway cleaned. Stephenson said the recognition was a testament to the dedication of the community.

“The coolest thing is when people just show up — even if they’ve never been to our businesses,” he said. “It’s not about promotion. When people spend two hours picking up trash, they feel like they’ve done something great — and they have.”

Stephenson said the program is sustained through collaboration and community goodwill. The county provides equipment such as safety vests and litter bags, while the sponsoring businesses cover other expenses like bottled water, gloves and volunteer T-shirts.

Looking ahead, he hopes to see more organizations — from schools to church groups — get involved.

“I’d love to see more groups reach out to do their own cleanups or join ours,” he said. “We’ve done really well with our campaign, and it’s not fancy — just people who care about where they live.”

For more information about the county’s Adopt-A-Spot program, visit https://adopt-a-spot-kitcowa.hub.arcgis.com/.