Terrill Haigler, the former sanitation worker turned clean streets advocate and Philly social media star better known as “Ya Fav Trashman,” has wanted to get his own trash truck since 2022.
On Dec. 23, he got it — and has been using it for junk removal, construction cleanup, and illegal dump pickups around Philadelphia, employing young men returning from incarceration and at-risk youth along the journey.
“I want to use the truck and use the guys to show people that it is so possible to just see a problem and address it — without going through all the, as my mother would say, ‘the rigmarole,’ ” Haigler said. “You see a problem, you get together as a community and we solve it, and we get rid of the problem.”
In his fifth year running a volunteer opportunity for Philly’s MLK Day of Service through his nonprofit Trash 2 Treasure Inc., Haigler is bringing the truck and crew to help clean up a section of road in Roxborough.
‘Buying into a cleaner Philadelphia’
On a frigid Wednesday in January, Haigler and two of the four young men who began working with him on Dec. 31 took the truck, fresh from a new black paint job on Monday, around North Philly to pick up illegally dumped trash that had been reported to Haigler’s social account. He said he received more than a dozen suggestions back immediately from followers. Some locations were frequent culprits, like McKean Street and S. 8th Street, where Haigler said he would love to see a camera put up to catch the people who dump there.
The first stop was Fotterall Square on the corner of N. 12th Street and W. Cumberland Street, where two mattresses and some frozen drywall had been dumped. Philly’s trash never feels too overwhelming for Haigler.
“I chose to look at it the opposite way. I feel like as long as there’s something out there, we’re going to be busy,” Haigler said. “Now, everybody in this neighborhood when they come back today, they’re not going to see mattresses.”
The vehicle is a 25-yard rear load garbage truck that can hold about 10 tons of material. It has dumpster arms, which will allow Haigler to eventually expand to picking up dumpsters for restaurants and apartments.
Haigler purchased the truck from the woman-owned MVP Hauling, using funding from a Keystone Communities Program state grant, along with donations from supporters.
Haigler’s cleanup crew on payroll is currently four returning citizens, all under the age of 25. He said he hopes to hire five more workers by the end of the year, and wants this current crop to grow into their roles, get the commercial drivers licenses they need to drive the trucks, and create a cycle of employment.
“I’m having a good time. I like it, spending my free time doing something positive,” said Tyler Johnson, who is part of the truck crew and also Haigler’s cousin. “I’m trying to make money, but I’m doing something positive.”
“Some of these young men make choices because they have no other options and now I feel like I’m giving them another option to make better choices,” said Haigler. He added that women have reached out recently, and he is open to everyone becoming part of the team.
The crew travelled to W. Girard Street and N. Carlisle Street next, behind the KFC on Broad Street, where there was a dilapidated couch and several piles of trash along the street.
Haigler said the team’s current workload is roughly 60% pro bono and 40% paid jobs. He hopes to eventually grow the operation to a fleet of five to seven trucks, with sustainable contracts. A brick-and-mortar recycling plant in Philadelphia is also a goal.
Road bumps
There have been a few setbacks: A broken fuel gauge led to him running out gas in Germantown. A tire blew out and needed to be replaced. Someone stole the batteries from the truck when it was parked in a lot, but crowdfunding helped with the $600 needed for each battery as well as the labor, and the truck was back collecting trash by the next day.
“I’ve been saying thank you to the community, because my organization is driven by Philadelphians,” Haigler said. “I can’t exist unless Philadelphians are buying into a cleaner Philadelphia and yesterday proved to me that we are buying into a cleaner Philadelphia. We are ready for a cleaner Philadelphia, and I love being the vehicle that’s going to take us there.”
Unlike most entrepreneurs and businesses, Haiggler welcomes competition and imitators.
“There’s enough out here for all of us. Everybody’s gonna find their niche, I don’t believe [anyone’s] going to step on anybody’s toes,” he said. “If I’m the first one with this model and I can prove it to be successful, I welcome everyone in all shapes and sizes to join me. Because at the end of the day, Philadelphia wins.”
What’s next?
The truck will soon head over to nonprofit Fresh Artists, which will add the logos of the companies and people who have sponsored the purchase and upkeep of the truck. Among those are the Philadelphia 76ers, Pond Lehocky Giordano LLP, Indego Bike Share, Bella Sloan Enterprises, Danse4Nia, and Breakthru Beverage Group.
Haigler has a goal for the truck this year — to pick up 500 tons of trash between April and the end of the year. To get there, he’ll be asking 500 people to donate $120, the cost to dump a ton of trash in Philadelphia, in return for a “free” junk removal service.
“A lot of people reach out to me and ask me to pick up trash, and I don’t mind, but I think they forget the cost behind it,” he said.
Haigler also has a pay-what-you-can pickup set up for Saturday, Jan. 18, where the truck will go to people who donate a minimum of $20 to have unwanted items picked up from the curb.
Monday’s MLK Day of Service event runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and aims to fill up the truck. The meetup address is available once you’ve registered. All you have to bring are gloves and boots. Other supplies will be provided.
