Agawam’s Jack Coughlin, left paralyzed after being struck while picking up trash, awarded the Pat Franklin Courageous Spirit Award
Updated Mar 15, 2021;
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Jack Coughlin’s campaign against litter, particularly “nip” liquor bottles, has gained national recognition, even as he remains confined to a hospital bed.
On Thursday, Coughlin was awarded the Pat Franklin Courageous Spirit Award from the Container Recycling Institute, a California-based nonprofit. He was paralyzed in January after being struck by a car while picking up roadside trash in Agawam.
Coughlin, who turned 78 in the days after the collision, was well-known in town for walking the streets every day, picking up litter. He was also an activist for environmental and sportsmen’s causes, and one of the leaders in efforts to improve the Medina Street boat ramp in Chicopee. While raising a family in Springfield, Coughlin had also been active in neighborhood associations in East Forest Park and Sixteen Acres.