Farmingdale Boy, 6, Cleans Local Parks and School Grounds

FARMINGDALE, NY — Summer is officially around the corner, which means spring is coming to an end. AJ Retaleato, a 6-year-old Farmingdale boy, has been doing a different kind of spring cleaning.

For the past week, AJ and his parents have visited local parks and school grounds. Anthony Retaleato, his father, watches as AJ patrols the area with his handy trash picker and gloves, scooping up whatever litter catches his eye. Retaleato says his son woke up one day and asked to go to the beach. What surprised him, however, was that AJ said he wanted to clean it. They compromised, and headed to Captain Kathy Mazza Park instead.

"[AJ] wanted to pick up all the garbage," Anthony Retaleato told Patch. "He said he felt bad for the earth. That was his quote that day. I’m like, ‘Alright, buddy.’"

That day, AJ also cleaned the street to and from the park.

"I asked him, ‘What do you want to do tomorrow?’ He goes, ‘Can we go to a different park?’ I said, ‘Well, we can do the schools,’ and we did the schools," Retaleato said. "He’s got this thing where he wants to clean. I’m not going to discourage him."

In one week, AJ has cleaned Captain Kathy Mazza Park twice, Saltzman East Memorial School, Howitt Middle School, Farmingdale High School, Michel Park, and others. When Retaleato and his wife go on walks in the afternoon, AJ tags along with his bucket and cleans the streets.

"[AJ] said he wants to do it every day this summer," Retaleato said. "We’ll see if we go every day. That’s what he wants to do."

Retaleato and his wife are extremely proud of their son.

"It’s amazing to me that at 6-and-a-half years old, he just wakes up one day and decided to do this," Retaleato said. "All on his own. He said he saw a video on TikTok or something, and that was it. I’m pretty much speechless over it. It’s amazing, it really is."