There are just a few things in life that really matter in life — family, friends, faith and time.
Sometimes, we get a little mixed up and think ambition, money, careers, being in the in crowd and stuff like that should be our priorities. But really, these aren’t the things that last. Volunteers like ours at Keep Liberty Beautiful are gracious enough each year to share their valuable time with us. I do not take that gift lightly. Time is quite valuable, so when people give it freely to make a difference in our community, we need to celebrate that gift.
We did just that recently during our annual volunteer appreciation for Keep Liberty Beautiful. Through the generosity of South Georgia Bank and the ever-supportive Liberty County Chamber of Commerce, we celebrated our local volunteers for this year.
Once again, our community outdid itself. In 2014, more than 4,000 volunteers worked to improve our local environment and shared almost 17,000 hours of their precious time. That is pretty incredible!
We extend a particular special thanks to these 2015 Outstanding KLB Volunteers:
• Our Outstanding Adult Volunteer Leadership Award went to Willie Cato, who is serving his second term as chairman for our KLB advisory board and faithfully supports almost all of our program activities and events during the year.
• We presented the Outstanding Volunteer Support Award to the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau. The Chamber provides technical design and creative support each year for many of our programs. The group also helps support and sponsor many programs, like our Earth Day celebration and the quarterly Win-dex Awards to encourage attractive businesses. We also are happy to work with the CVB in making our community as attractive and inviting as possible.
• This year’s Outstanding Business Volunteer, Georgia Power Company, has supported and sponsored KLB programs again and again in the last decade. The Citizens of Georgia Power also participate in litter cleanups, community-improvement projects and recycling events and annually sponsor our Earth Day celebration.
• Our Outstanding Neighborhood is Forest Lake Neighborhood in Hinesville. This group, led by Mrs. Beard, works faithfully to keep their neighborhood clean and attractive all year long.
• Our Outstanding School Volunteer this year is Lewis Frasier Middle School. Its clubs and classes participate in area litter cleanups and campus cleanups throughout the year. It also has an active recycling program and just completed an environmentally friendly renovation of its Outdoor Classroom site.
• We presented our Outstanding Volunteer Organization award to United Military Care. UMC is a faithful Adopt Liberty group for North Main Street in Hinesville, has an active edible-gardens program and works to encourage local military families to learn how to garden to grow healthy, fresh food. It also actively participates in city litter cleanups and our annual Earth Day celebration.
I wish we could award all of our individual volunteers, churches, businesses, civic and youth organizations and schools for all of their time and efforts. They all are truly outstanding and make a unique effort for our community. We want to extend our appreciation to all of them for using their time in such a life-enhancing way. Would you like to be involved? There are plenty of projects out there waiting for a volunteer like you. Consider sharing your time. There are many benefits for you and the community.
For more information on volunteering with us and the role you can play in creating a healthy environment, contact KLB at keeplibertycountybeautiful@gmail.com or go to www.keeplibertybeautiful.org.