'The least we can do': How you can thank custodial staff who cleaned up after Capitol riot

WASHINGTON (ABC7) — There's a new effort underway to thank Capitol custodial staff who immediately began cleaning up the mess left behind by rioters, so that Congress could get back to work and resume certification of the electoral college vote.

"When I saw law enforcement was finally regaining control of the building, I saw one news outlet say the Capitol is now being cleaned so that Congress can safely return," said Sharon McMahon. "And I was just really struck by that moment -- like, it is someone's job to clean this up so we can have democracy."

McMahon is a government teacher who once taught in Montgomery County, but she currently lives in Minnesota and her classroom is Instagram.

"Shortly before the election, in about October, I started posting videos about, let's refresh our memories about how the electoral college works, and asking people what questions they have, and really trying to make the focus nonpartisan, fact-based information," she said.

In the months since the election, Sharon has amassed more than 240,000 followers. Now, she's hoping they'll help her say thank you to the Capitol custodial staff who she views as unsung heroes in the aftermath of last week's attack.

"It's the least we can do, to send a note saying thank you so much for your service. Your service has not gone unnoticed. It's important to me," said McMahon. "Literally democracy was hanging on somebody doing this job of cleaning up a right and cleaning up all the destruction."

McMahon then got the idea to ask people to write thank you letters. But at first, she had to figure out exactly where to send those messages of gratitude.

"One of the challenges is the Capitol being a federal building and needing to be secure, and needing to make sure all incoming mail is scanned. So there's a big delay between when mail is received there and when it can actually be delivered," she explained.

That's when ABC7 reached out to the union that represents many of the custodial crews who work at the Capitol.

The president of AFSCME Local 626 (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees) told ABC7 that not only did those employees clean up after the riot, he says some of them were already at work and inside the building when the siege took place.

On Wednesday, ABC7 was able to help connect put McMahon in touch with the union president. Shortly after that, she officially launched the letter writing campaign.

"He was just so kind and so grateful, and just humble. I think even a little surprised that anyone noticed or cared. So he was willing to take on the legwork of helping to disperse the letters and making sure people would see them," she said. "I'm going to be posting both an email address that people can send an email too, and also a mailing address if someone wants to send a physical card."

McMahon also reached out to the Architect of the Capitol, which has more than more than 2,000 employees that work to maintain and preserve the Capitol buildings and grounds.

"They are putting together a special edition of a magazine that will be given to all their employees, a remembrance magazine. So they're also asking for notes to be sent to them, to be included in this special edition of a magazine for their employees."

She's also asking people to share their messages online using the hashtag #capitolcleanupcrew.

Here are the addresses where thank you letters can be sent to custodial staff:

AFSCME Local 626
Ford House Office Building
2nd Street Southwest
Washington, DC 20024

OR

Architect of the Capitol
US Capitol
Room SB-16
Washington, DC 20515

You can also email thank you letters to the union, AFSCME Local 626, at TyRdouglas@icloud.com or to the Architect of the Capitol at communications@aoc.gov.

The hope is that thousands of people will join the effort to show gratitude to those employees. Just hours after McMahon launched the letter-writing campaign, ABC7 spotted several posts on Instagram with people sharing photos of their thank you letters using the hashtag #capitolcleanupcrew.

"There's just something about a personal note of thanks that makes a difference," said McMahon.

She views it as just a small way to let that cleaning crew know just how much their work and dedication was appreciated, in the midst of a chaotic day at the Capitol.

"In a time when the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket, a tiny little glimmer of hope can make all the difference for somebody," she said. "And I really do think hope is the best gift someone can get."