The face of the Street Team

Heather Cameron keeps 118 Ave litter free

BY NATASHA RUSSELL

You may see Heather Cameron walking along 118 Avenue pushing her garbage cart, and wonder who she is. Every weekday from 7 am to 3 pm Cameron picks up litter as an Alberta Avenue Ambassador, making the avenue a healthier and more attractive place to walk and live.

Using the 311 app, Cameron reports any city maintenance needs along her route from NAIT to the Expo Centre. She safely disposes of any needles found along the way. Heather Cameron first hit Alberta Avenue employed by the Boyle Street Ventures Hiregood program. Through this social enterprise, she soon connected with neighbours at the Alberta Avenue Business Association (AABA) and Alberta Avenue Community League (AACL), who saw great potential and demand for increased street stewardship. The Alberta Avenue Ambassador Pilot Program from 2020 now had a new face.

It didn’t take long before Cameron was well known and liked by the community of local businesses, neighbours, and visitors along 118 Avenue. Born in Beardy’s and Okemasis’ Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, Cameron set down new roots in Edmonton three years ago. She was a mother of three and an addiction counselor diploma holder at the time. 

“I love this area,” she says. “It’s a beautiful community and all of it is my outdoor office. I think of 118 Avenue like my living room. I hate a messy living room, so I take pride in my work. I enjoy the fact that I’m keeping the community clean, and I feel like I’m appreciated and respected. When you have that, it doesn’t feel like work.”

Over this winter holiday season, Cameron started a pilot called Project Warmth. She cashed in empty bottles she had collected over the years. With the help of family and some generous local businesses, baggies were filled with toques, scarves, mitts, and granola bars. Thanks to Cameron’s initiative, 50 baggies landed into the hands of Alberta Avenue’s unhoused community members in December 2023.

Cameron starts her workday with a cup of coffee in the AABA office while she checks her emails and reviews her reports. She also helps with the onboarding of new Street Team members. These invaluable individuals provided snow removal for local businesses and neighbours in need during the winter season. Budget dependent, the aim of the AABA is to grow the street stewardship teams to continue to meet our community’s needs.

Has she changed? Cameron is emphatic: “Yes, my work on the Ave, it has changed something in me. I’m more energetic and excited to come to work.”

When asked what else her time in this position has taught her, Cameron says she has gained compassion. She now takes the time to listen to people’s stories and has learned to not judge a book by its cover. She doesn’t litter (or at least tries her very best not to) anymore. Whenever she walks past someone shoveling or doing any kind of clean-up work, she can’t help but tell them “Thank you,” and that they’re doing a great job.

About her future goals, Cameron says: “I’d love to continue my growth. Maybe one day I’ll be an addictions counselor on the Ave since that’s what I got my diploma for, but I’d love to stay on the Ave for as long as possible.”

Community street stewardship grows with all of us. Imagine if we all took a page out of Heather Cameron’s book. She sees our neighbourhood blocks as an extension of her living room. Let’s follow her inspiration and do that, too.

Natasha Russell trained as a biochemist and veterinarian, owns the Edmonton Community Vet Clinic, mentors Little Vets, and enjoys her time as an engaged community member

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