Left Hand Valley Courier - All Local, All The Time

Jackson Erb first showed up at Rock & Rails for the same reason that most people do—to see a great concert. Little did he know that his love of music would lead to a regular community service stint.

“Jill [Whitener] came to me at the right time,” Erb said. “I was just getting into volunteering at the Humane Society, and I liked coming here, so I just started doing it.”

Now in his fifth season, Erb is one of the most veteran Rock & Rails Gargoyles. Over the years, he’s helped the clean-up squad evolve from a loosely organized band of chatty lollygaggers into a hyper-efficient cleaning machine.

“After the first year, it was kind of a train wreck,” he said, probably without intending the pun. “We didn’t act as a team, really. As the years went on, we started to work as a team, and it made Rock & Rails way better.”

Erb said the “music and people” have kept him coming back all these years, especially bands like Last Men on Earth and The Long Run, which he counts among his favorites.

Ironically, music is also why the Silver Creek junior-to-be might have to curtail his Rock & Rails volunteering. A talented musician in his own right, the longtime clarinet player was recently selected to be a drum major in the Raptor marching band, a position that will take up a lot of his free time over the next two years.

“Everything’s going to get a lot busier,” Erb said. “I’m getting a lot of leadership roles, and I want to focus on that.”