Thank you, D&L Sanitation!

The collecting and disposing of our trash can be grueling (and dirty) work, but somebody has to do it, and the team at D&L Sanitation does it all with a smile, which is why I’ve decided to spotlight them in this week’s appreciation post.

I caught up with D&L employee Larry Schott, earlier this afternoon, as he passed down my street. According to him, there is a never a dull day in his line of work. “It’s always something, but we try to keep the customers happy,” he said with a big smile.

Schott, who’s been with D&L for the last 16 years, works several days a week, collecting trash in Hampton on Tuesdays and Fridays and cardboard when scheduled by the customers and on recycling days. Schott is one of several retired community members who does this as a part-time job for D&L. For him, it’s a way to stay busy and active.

D&L Sanitation is a family-owned business, headquartered in Sheffield. It was first opened in 1970 by the Conlon family and then purchased in 2000 by Jill and Scott Conlon. Since then, Jill and Scott have run the show, handling everything from truck maintenance to customer service and administrative work. And when they’re short a driver, Scott hops in a truck and gets to work, hauling trash alongside his employees.

Jill said that their work isn’t always easy, but that they do what they can with what they have to provide a high-quality service to their customers. The company services more than 1,500 customers around Franklin County and Cerro Gordo, hauling their trash to the Landfill of North Iowa in Clear Lake.

“We really are an essential service,” Jill said. “During Covid, when everybody was closed down, we couldn’t, because we are essential. It’s not an easy life or job but it’s a reliable job and it’s consistent.”

Jill said that keeping up with all of the latest regulations of what they can and cannot do plays a big role in their work.

"There are a lot of things that are involved in this that people don’t realize. All the regulations and everything else. We have to take everything into consideration,” she said. “The work never stops but we do what we can to make our customers happy.”

Jill said they are also big on giving back to the communities they serve, often donating their time, services and money to events and projects in Hampton, Sheffield and area communities. And when they need a truck repair or supplies, they keep it local.

“We are very community-oriented,” she said.

To D&L Sanitation, and everyone else who hauls garbage and recycling in our area: thank you! You are appreciated.