There are many characters you might expect to encounter around Ongar. You might see dog walkers, joggers, cyclists, parents rushing after children, people heading to the shops, or volunteers from Ongar Tidy Towns armed with litter pickers and bags.
But every now and again, a mysterious figure appears on the streets.
He wears a cowboy hat.
He has a sheriff's badge.
He walks with the confidence of a man who has seen things that no ordinary citizen should ever have to see.
And when he looks down and spots a discarded bottle, crisp packet or takeaway container lying on the ground, his expression changes.
The Sheriff of Ongar has arrived.
And he's here to clean up the town. 🤠
Wanted: Litter!
The Sheriff isn't interested in gold, glory or fame. He has absolutely no interest in becoming a celebrity, and he certainly isn't looking for trouble.
He's looking for something much more important.
LITTER.
That's right.
The Sheriff of Ongar has declared war on rubbish.
His mission is simple: keep Ongar looking clean, tidy, green and welcoming for everyone who lives here.
Every morning, he surveys the streets like an old-fashioned sheriff surveying the Wild West.
Only instead of looking for outlaws hiding behind a saloon, he's looking behind hedges, underneath benches and around street corners.
And sometimes, what he finds is enough to make even the toughest sheriff shake his head.
“Who left that there?”
A discarded drinks bottle.
A takeaway carton.
An empty packet.
A coffee cup.
Another packet.
And another.
The Sheriff sighs.
He reaches for his trusty litter picker.
“Not on my watch.”
The Sheriff Takes Out the Trash 🗑️🗑️🗑️
There's a simple rule in the Sheriff's town:
If you bring it in, take it home.
And if someone has unfortunately decided that the street, footpath, woodland or green space is their personal rubbish bin, the Sheriff has another solution.
He takes out the trash.
Literally.
Bag by bag, piece by piece, the Sheriff and the good people of Ongar Tidy Towns work to reclaim the streets.
It's not glamorous work.
Nobody is going to make a Hollywood blockbuster about picking up 37 crisp packets on a wet Tuesday morning.
There won't be a red carpet.
There probably won't even be a cup of tea waiting at the end.
But it matters.
Because every piece of rubbish removed makes Ongar a little bit better.
And the Sheriff knows something important:
A clean town doesn't happen by accident.
It happens because people care.
Wanted: Volunteers!
The Sheriff might look like a one-man operation, but even the toughest lawman needs backup.
That's where Ongar Tidy Towns comes in.
Volunteers give their time to help clean up the local area, collect litter and improve the appearance of the community.
They don't do it because it's glamorous.
They do it because Ongar is their home.
They want residents to be proud of where they live, and they want visitors to see a community that takes care of its surroundings.
The Sheriff is particularly impressed by anyone willing to grab a litter picker and get stuck in.
In his book, these people aren't ordinary volunteers.
They're deputies.
The Deputies of Ongar.
And there is always room for another one.
The Great Ongar Litter Hunt
Rumour has it that the Sheriff occasionally sets out on what he calls a “Litter Hunt.”
He rides through Ongar — although these days, for practical reasons, his trusty steed is more likely to have four wheels than four legs — and searches for rubbish.
The Sheriff has developed an extraordinary ability to spot litter from a considerable distance.
A plastic bottle hidden underneath a bush?
Spotted.
A drinks can lying beside a footpath?
Spotted.
A takeaway container abandoned beside a wall?
Spotted.
A crisp packet blowing down the road at approximately 40 kilometres per hour?
SPOTTED.
The Sheriff springs into action.
His litter picker is drawn.
The bag is opened.
The offending rubbish is captured.
Justice has been served.
And somewhere in Ongar, another piece of litter is no longer somebody else's problem.
But the Sheriff Has a Message…
Despite his tough appearance, the Sheriff isn't angry with everyone.
In fact, his message is remarkably straightforward.
Please don't litter.
It really is that simple.
If you have a bottle, packet, coffee cup or takeaway container, please put it in a bin or bring it home with you.
If a bin is full, don't leave your rubbish beside it.
And if you're out walking and notice a piece of litter, why not pick it up if you can safely do so?
One person picking up one piece of rubbish might not seem like much.
But imagine hundreds of people doing it.
That's how change happens.
That's how a community becomes cleaner.
And that's how the Sheriff likes to see Ongar.
The Sheriff of Ongar's Code
The Sheriff's code is short enough to fit on the back of his badge:
Respect your town.
Take your rubbish home.
Don't litter.
Look after green spaces.
Help when you can.
And never underestimate what a small group of volunteers can achieve.
He also has one final rule.
If you see someone from Ongar Tidy Towns walking around with a litter picker and a bag, give them a wave.
They are doing something positive for the community.
The Sheriff approves.
There's a New Law in Town
So, the next time you're walking through Ongar and you notice a suspicious-looking cowboy hat appearing in the distance, don't panic.
It might just be the Sheriff.
He'll probably be standing beside a pile of rubbish, holding a litter picker in one hand and a full rubbish bag in the other.
He'll look towards the horizon.
He'll look at Ongar.
He'll look at the rubbish.
And he'll say the words that have become famous throughout the community:
“This town ain't big enough for litter.”
Then he'll get back to work.
Because the Sheriff of Ongar isn't here to make arrests.
He's here to make a difference.
He's here to take out the trash. 🗑️🗑️🗑️
He's here to help keep Ongar clean.
And most importantly, he's here to remind all of us that keeping our community tidy isn't just the Sheriff's job — it's everyone's job.
So let's give him a hand.
Grab a litter picker.
Grab a bag.
Get involved with Ongar Tidy Towns.
And together, let's show litter that it has picked the wrong town.
Welcome to Ongar, Sheriff.
The streets are yours. 🤠🌳🗑️
And remember… LITTER HAS NOWHERE TO HIDE!
